Polymorphs
Identification of polymorphs in pharmaceutical products is a leading X-ray diffraction (XRD) application. The detection and quantification of polymorphic contamination is used to improve production efficiency and cost. In the study of different polycrystalline structures, within a drug compound, one polymorph is distinguished from another by a unique powder diffraction pattern associated with that specific crystal structure. Phase analysis can be restricted to qualitative identification only or can be extended to a full quantitative analysis. The analysis is applicable to polymorphs or to multi-component formulations. A special case of this type of analysis is "percentage crystallinity," where the volume percentage crystalline active ingredient to an amorphous filler is measured within a dosage formulation. X-ray diffraction analysis is also employed to study dosage formulations, under a variety of environmental conditions and over time, to characterize the formation of any polymorphs that could adversely affect performance and toxicity.
Systems