Self-assembled silver nanoislands formed on glass surface via out-diffusion for multiple usages in SERS applications

We demonstrate that silver nanoisland film self-assembled on the surface of silver-containing glass in the course of thermal processing in hydrogen is capable to detect 10⁻⁷ M concentration of rhodamine 6G in water using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) technique. The film can be multiply restored on the same glass substrate via annealing of the glass in hydrogen. We showed that the film can be self-assembled after as much as ten circles of the substrate cleaning followed by annealing. The proposed technique of the silver nanoisland film formation enables multiple usage of the same glass substrate in SERS experiments.     

Diverse bio-sensing and therapeutic applications of plasmon enhanced nanostructures

Substantial advancements have been observed over the years in the research and development of Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR). A variety of current and future applications involving anisotropic plasmonic nanoparticles include biosensors, photothermal therapies, photocatalysis, and various other fields. Amongst various other applications, plasmonic enhancements are deployed in Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) mediated bio-sensing, absorption spectroscopy based analyte quantification, and fluorescence spectroscopy-based biomolecular detection up to femtomolar level and even on the level of single molecules. LSPR based healthcare diagnostics and therapeutics have grown much faster than expected, with an increased number of published original research articles and reviews. Despite the extensive literature available, a comprehensive review with a focused emphasis on recent advances in the field of plasmonic particle anisotropy, plasmonic nanostructure, plasmonic coupling mediated enhanced LSPR intensity and their diverse applications in biosensing is needed. This article focuses on LSPR properties of anisotropic nanostructures like spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNP), gold nanorod (AuNR), gold nanostar (AuNs), gold nanorattles (AuNRT), gold nanoholes (AuNH), dimeric nanostructures and their role in plasmonic enhancements for targeted biosensing and therapeutic research. The contemporary state of the art biosensing development around SERS has also been discussed. A detailed literature analysis of recent development in micro-surgery, photothermal tumor killing, biosensor development for detection up to single molecule level, high-efficiency drug delivery are covered in this article. Furthermore, recent and advanced technologies including Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy (SORS), Surface Enhanced Resonance Raman Spectroscopy (SERRS), and Surface Enhanced Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy (SESORS) are presented citing their importance in biosensing. We complement this review article with relevant theoretical frameworks to understand finer nuances within the literature that is discussed.     

基于银纳米颗粒的HCPCFSERS传感系统优化设计

银纳米颗粒与光子晶体光纤、表面增强拉曼散射效应结合而成的PCF SERS传感器得到了科研界的广泛关注.而PCF结构、SERS基底的性能是传感器的重要影响因素.为了进一步提高SERS PCF传感器的性能,通过研究对比PCF和SERS基底结构参数对传感性能的影响,设计出适用于PCF SERS传感的空芯PCF以及SERS基底的结构参数.通过数值计算,设计的空芯PCF空气填充率为56.30%,当激发光波长785 nm时存在光子带隙,并能够实现单模传输.而半径为38 nm的银纳米球在间距为0.7 nm时能够产生最大的SERS增强因子.研究证明,设计的空芯PCF在785 nm输入波长下既能够基模传输激发光,又能够为SERS提供理想的活性面积,而且银纳米颗粒的形状、尺寸、间距对SERS性能影响严重,而且与入射波长有很强的依赖关系.     

Interfacial potassium induced enhanced Raman spectroscopy for single-crystal TiO2 nanowhisker

Structural control and element doping are two popular strategies to produce semiconductors with surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy(SERS) properties. For TiO_2 based SERS substrates, maintaining a good crystallinity is critical to achieve excellent Raman scattering. At elevated temperatures(N600 °C), the phase transition from anatase to rutile TiO_2 could result in a poor SERS performance. In this work, we report the successful synthesis of TiO_2 nanowhiskers with excellent SERS properties. The enhancement factor, an index of SERS performance, is 4.96 × 10~6 for methylene blue molecule detecting, with a detection sensitivity around 10~(-7) mol·L~(-1).Characterizations, such as XRD, Raman, TEM, UV–vis and Zeta potential measurement, have been performed to decrypt structural and chemical characteristics of the newly synthesized TiO_2 nanowhiskers. The photo absorption onset of MB adsorbed TiO_2 nanowhiskers was similar to that of bare TiO_2 nanowhiskers. In addition, no new band was observed from the UV–vis of MB modified TiO_2 nanowhiskers. Both results suggest that the high enhancement factor cannot be explained by the charge-transfer mechanism. With the support of ab initio density functional theory calculations, we reveal that interfacial potassium is critical to maintain thermal stability of the anatase phase up to 900 °C. In addition, the deposition of potassium results in a negatively charged TiO_2 nanowhisker surface, which favors specific adsorption of methylene blue molecules and significantly improves SERS performance via the electrostatic adsorption effect.     

纳米银的制备及其在SERS上的研究

纳米银制备的方法繁多,综述了用液相法、固相法制备纳米银,给出了这些方法得到的纳米银的表面增强拉曼散射（SERS）结果,并提出了分子吸附状态的一些影响因素。对生物技术、理论分析（如密度泛函理论）应用于纳米银的制备以及表面增强拉曼散射（SERS）的研究等提出了展望。     

Nanostructured Silver Substrates With Stable and Universal SERS Properties: Application to Organic Molecules and Semiconductor Nanoparticles

Nanostructured silver films have been prepared by thermal deposition on silicon, and their properties as SERS substrates investigated. The optimal conditions of the post-growth annealing of the substrates were established. Atomic force microscopy study revealed that the silver films with relatively dense and homogeneous arrays of 60–80-nm high pyramidal nanoislands are the most efficient for SERS of both organic dye and inorganic nanoparticles analytes. The noticeable enhancement of the Raman signal from colloidal nanoparticles with the help of silver island films is reported for the first time.