Chemists often rely on spectroscopic techniques like FTIR, MS, and NMR for the assignment of functional groups. FTIR utilizes the frequencies associated with the bonds in a molecule, which typically vibrate around 4000 cm -1 to 400 cm , known as the Infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum . This region is associated with specific frequencies that change the oscillating patterns of chemical bonds in the analyte, resulting in an IR spectrum . Typically, a spectroscopist manually analyses this spectrum to identify patterns corresponding to a given functional group using previously established rules and principals , a time-consuming process subject to human bias and interpretation. Alternatively, if the compound has previously been characterized, the spectroscopist can use software to match the peaks of the analyte to a database of known compounds for identification .