BRAINCAKEThe Fingerprint Region
The fingerprint region of an IR spectrum is the region below 1500 cm−1.
This region contains many overlapping absorptions from the bending and stretching of the molecule as a whole, including C-C and C-O bonds. The pattern is complicated, and it is unique to each compound, like a human fingerprint. Even two compounds with the same functional group, such as propan-1-ol and butan-1-ol, have different fingerprint regions.
The fingerprint region is not usually used to find functional groups, because the individual absorptions are hard to assign. Instead it is used to identify a specific compound.
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More in Organic Analysis
- Identifying Functional Groups
- Test Tube Tests for Organic Compounds
- High Resolution Mass Spectrometry
- Precise Relative Molecular Mass
- Infrared Spectroscopy
- Bond Vibrations and IR Absorption
- Interpreting IR Spectra
- Infrared Radiation and the Greenhouse Effect
All 9 lessons in Organic Analysis · All AQA AS-level Chemistry topics