Submitted by Prof. Axel Zeitler on Fri, 21/03/2014 - 09:38
We used terahertz spectroscopy to investigate the crystallisation and phase changes in paracetamol from the amorphous solid to the liquid phase
This study evolved from Juraj's previous work on the characterisation of amorphous materials using terahertz spectroscopy, published last year in PCCP. Together with Michael and Miriam, who worked in our group as part of their final year IIB undergraduate research project, we were able to apply this method to accurately determine the onset of crystallisation in a sample of paracetamol by investigating the inter-molecular hydrogen bonding dynamics during this process.
J. Sibik, M.J. Sargent, M. Franklin, and J.A. Zeitler, Crystallisation and phase changes in paracetamol from the amorphous solid to the liquid phase, Molecular Pharmaceutics, doi:10.1021/mp400768m, 11, 1326–1334 (2014). 
J. Sibik, E.Y. Shalaev and J.A. Zeitler, Glassy dynamics of sorbitol solutions at terahertz frequencies, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, doi:10.1039/C3CP51936H, 15, 11931-11942 (2013).
This work was funded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
