The Raman spectrum of florencite-(REE) [REEAl3(PO4)2(OH)6]: An integrated experimental and computational approach

Florencite is a hydrous light rare-earth elements (LREE) aluminium phosphate [REEAl₃(PO₄)₂(OH)₆], that amongst the REE-rich minerals is quite common. The main end-members are Ce-, La- and Nd-rich terms that were found in several genetic environments. Despite the large occurrence worldwide, to the authors' knowledge, florencite has attracted very few studies, particularly concerning the characterization of its Raman spectrum. We present a detailed study of the Raman spectrum of florencite, combining experimental measurements and theoretical calculations. Experimental Raman spectra (in the 100–1300 cm⁻¹ spectral range) are measured on four florencite samples characterized by different chemical composition, that is, different REE abundance. The results highlight a remarkable coincidence between different Raman spectra measured on each sample, despite the significantly different chemical compositions in terms of their REE content. The same similarities were also observed in the computed spectra at the ab initio level; moreover, the calculations allowed the attributions of the different Raman signals to specific vibrational modes.