The Diacell Diasqueeze FTIR diamond anvil cell with conical type IIas synthetic diamonds was designed for examining materials in a FTIR spectrometer or an IR microscope but also is suitable for very demanding ultra-low Raman background measurements.

The recorded IR spectrum is known as the “chemical fingerprint” of a substance because it is unique to each chemical compound.  The diamond cell is designed to flatten material to allow maximum transmission of the IR radiation resulting in sharp, clear spectra.

This cell, which includes seats and type IIas diamond anvils (8-sided), is delivered aligned and ready for use.

A guiding plate, compatible with most FTIR spectrometers, is also supplied as standard.  This guiding plate enables the cell to be mounted vertically onto FTIR sample holders.

Applications

The Diacell Diasqueeze is used in many forensic science laboratories for the infrared (IR) analysis of trace evidence, such as paint chips, fibers, plastics, nylon, rubber, paper products, minerals and chemicals, including controlled substances.

Infrared spectroscopy is one of the few analytical techniques considered by the forensic science community to have the highest discriminating power required to provide confirmatory evidence about the chemical composition of a material. FT-IR is used extensively in most forensics laboratories to identify materials such as seized drugs and possible evidence from a crime scene.

One area where FT-IR has proven particularly valuable is analyzing automotive paint chips. A number of forensics laboratories have reported the significance of the infrared spectral range below 400 cm-1 in helping to identify specific inorganic pigments or minerals in a paint sample.  For example, see E.M. Suzuki, J Forensic Sci. 1992 Mar 37(2) : 467-87 – “Fourier transform infrared analyses of some particulate drug mixtures using a diamond anvil cell with a beam condenser and an infrared microscope”.