Raman optical activity of tartaric acid and related molecules

The Raman optical activity spectra of (2R, 3R) (+)- and (2S,3S) (−)-tartaric acid, (2R, 3R) (+)-dimethyl tartrate, (2R,3R) (−)-2,3-butanediol and (2S, 3S) (+)-dibenzoyl tartaric acid are presented. A large couplet at about 500cm−1 in the first three molecules, which probably originates in deformations of a chiral structural unit, might serve as an indicator of conformation and absolute configuration.