Study on terahertz spectra of traditional Chinese medicine tablets with porous and non-porous structures

Traditional Chinese medicine tablets have issues such as poor compressibility and delayed disintegration. We mainly get porous traditional Chinese medicine to solve the problem through pore-making technology. Terahertz technology provides high resolution, low energy loss, and is non-destructive and non-invasive. We have obtained the spectral data of Pueraria lobata tablets with terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. Porous and non-porous structures have effects on the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine. The spectral data have been distinguished according to porous and non-porous structures. The time-domain and frequency-domain spectra were compared and analyzed respectively, and related parameters such as refractive index and absorption coefficient were studied simultaneously. By comparison, we have found that terahertz spectroscopy is sensitive to the substance structure of traditional Chinese medicine, and terahertz technology can be used to detect the porous and non-porous traditional Chinese medicine. The results contribute to the methodological advancement of process analytical technology (PAT) of traditional Chinese medicine.