Algerian Journal of Forensic Sciences and Criminology
Volume 3, Numéro 1, Pages 22-31
2026-09-13

Raman Spectroscopy In Forensic Science And Anthropology: Current Applications And Emerging Perspectives



Authors : Dergal Fayçal .

Abstract

Forensic anthropology faces an enduring methodological tension: the imperative to extract maximum information from skeletal and dental remains while preserving their evidentiary integrity for downstream analyses such as DNA profiling, stable-isotope quantification, or radiocarbon dating. Raman spectroscopy a vibrational technique that probes the molecular fingerprint of a sample through inelastic light scattering has emerged as a compelling response to this constraint. Operating without physical contact, chemical reagents, or destructive sample preparation, the technique yields richly detailed spectra that encode both organic (collagen, lipids, proteins) and inorganic (hydroxyapatite, carbonates) constituents of mineralized tissues. Over the past decade, independent research groups have demonstrated that Raman-based measurements can contribute meaningfully to several forensic objectives: estimating the post-mortem interval from the progressive diagenetic alteration of bone, discriminating human from non-human osseous material, assessing the thermal history of burned or cremated remains, determining biological age and sex from dental hard tissues, and pre-screening specimens for DNA viability prior to costly extraction protocols. Portable and handheld spectrometers now bring these capabilities directly to the field, opening a realistic prospect of on-site triage at crime scenes and disaster contexts. The present mini-review provides a critical synthesis of the published literature on these applications, identifies the principal analytical challenges fluorescence interference, limited spatial resolution, the need for robust chemometric pipelines and outlines the directions along which the technique is most likely to mature in the coming years.

Keywords

forensic anthropology; non-destructive analysis; post-mortem interval; Raman spectroscopy; SERS; skeletal remain; chemometrics; machine learning; FTIR; X-ray diffraction; forensic method validation.

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