Surface-enhanced Raman scattering properties of highly ordered self-assemblies of gold nanorods with different aspect ratios

Gold nanorods with aspect ratios of from 1 (particles) to 31.6 were synthesized by the seed-mediated method and packed in a highly ordered structure on a large scale on silicon substrates through capillary force induced self-assembly behaviour during solvent evaporation.The gold nanorod surface exhibits a strong enhancing effect on Raman scattering spectroscopy.The enhancement of Raman scattering for two model molecules (2-naphthalenethiol and rhodamine 6G) is about 5-6 orders of magnitude.By changing the aspect ratio of the Au nanorods,we found that the enhancement factors decreased with the increase of aspect ratios.The observed Raman scattering enhancement is strong and should be ascribed to the surface plasmon coupling between closely packed nanorods,which may result in huge local electromagnetic field enhancements in those confined junctions.     

表面等离子激元非线性表面增强拉曼散射效应

本文采用热蒸发法制备得到纳米Ag颗粒作为增强拉曼衬底, 利用入射光子与纳米颗粒表面价电子的相互作用机理, 激发出高能表面等离子激元, 其表面等离子形成的高能"热点"起到表面增强拉曼散射效果. 通过比较不同入射光强下的拉曼峰强, 指出纳米Ag颗粒的增强拉曼散射效果可以实现低探测光强下的高散射强度, 即纳米Ag颗粒的表面等离子激元具有非线性的表面增强拉曼散射效果, 可降低对样品的光、热损伤, 以利于拓展拉曼散射光谱的应用范围. 同时比较不同纳米Ag颗粒衬底的表面增强拉曼散射效果表明, 采用的热蒸发工艺具有较大的工艺域度, 具有较强的工艺兼容性.     

镍纳米球腔阵列上吸附分子拉曼散射的表面增强效应

通过聚苯乙烯纳米球为模板制备了规则排列的镍纳米球腔阵列。研究结果表明吸附于镍纳米球腔内的对巯基苯胺的拉曼散射可被极大增强。拉曼散射的表面增强被归因于纳米球腔阵列的协同表面等离子体共振与光的耦合导致的电磁场增强以及纳米球腔结构对电磁场的聚焦效应而使球腔内电磁场能量密度的增大。     

Al2O3薄膜/纳米Ag颗粒复合结构的光吸收谱及增强Raman散射光谱研究

Al₂O₃介质薄膜与纳米Ag颗粒构成的复合结构,被应用于表面增强Raman散射探测实验中,其中Al₂O₃介质薄膜对纳米Ag颗粒的吸收谱及增强Raman散射光谱的影响被特别关注.该复合结构的光学特性表征出纳米Ag颗粒的偶极振荡特性.从光吸收谱中可以看到,其共振吸收谱随Al₂O₃介质薄膜厚度增加而在整个谱域上发生红移,表明纳米Ag颗粒的周围介电常数随Al₂O₃介质薄膜厚度的增加而增大.采用罗丹明6G作为探针原子,6个Raman特征峰的平均增益值作为表征表面增强Raman散射衬底增益程度的量度.实验结果表明,Al₂O₃介质薄膜层的引入提高了纳米Ag颗粒的衬底介电常数,并引起了散射共振的增强,从而使表面增强Raman散射强度提高.     

Al2O3薄膜/纳米Ag颗粒复合结构的光吸收谱及增强Raman散射光谱研究

Al₂O₃介质薄膜与纳米Ag颗粒构成的复合结构,被应用于表面增强Raman散射探测实验中,其中Al₂O₃介质薄膜对纳米Ag颗粒的吸收谱及增强Raman散射光谱的影响被特别关注.该复合结构的光学特性表征出纳米Ag颗粒的偶极振荡特性.从光吸收谱中可以看到,其共振吸收谱随Al₂O₃介质薄膜厚度增加而在整个谱域上发生红移,表明纳米Ag颗粒的周围介电常数随Al₂O₃介质薄膜厚度的增加而增大.采用罗丹明6G作为探针原子,6个Raman特征峰的平均增益值作为表征表面增强Raman散射衬底增益程度的量度.实验结果表明,Al₂O₃介质薄膜层的引入提高了纳米Ag颗粒的衬底介电常数,并引起了散射共振的增强,从而使表面增强Raman散射强度提高. 关键词： 纳米Ag薄膜 共振吸收 表面增强Raman散射 介电常数     

Exploring the origin of tip‐enhanced Raman scattering; preparation of efficient TERS probes with high yield

Tip‐enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) spectroscopy is a promising technique for nanoscale chemical analysis. However, there are several challenges preventing widespread application of this technology, including reproducible fabrication of efficient TERS probes. These problems reflect a lack of clear understanding of the origins of, and the parameters influencing TERS. It is believed that the coating characteristics at the apex of the tip have a major effect on the near‐field optical enhancement and thus the TERS activity of a metalized probe. Here we show that the aspect ratio of the tip can play a significant role in the efficiency of TERS probes. We argue that the electrostatic field arising from the lightning‐rod effect has a substantial role in the observed TERS effect. This argument is supported by ‘edge‐enhanced Raman scattering’ which is shown for a noble metal film. Furthermore, it is reported that an associated tip‐surface‐enhanced Raman scattering effect can be achieved by using a TERS‐inactive metalized probe on a surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy‐inactive roughened surface. This observation can be explained by an interparticle enhancement of the electromagnetic field. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

基于单个花状银纳米颗粒的表面增强拉曼散射效应研究

在室温下,以硝酸银为银源,抗坏血酸为还原剂,通过调节表面活性剂聚乙烯吡络烷酮的浓度,实现对花状银纳米颗粒的可控制备。利用扫描电子显微镜、原子力显微镜、X射线衍射和X射线能谱等手段检测并分析了材料的形貌结构和成分组成。实验结果表明,当聚乙烯吡络烷酮的浓度为0.1 mol/L时,所制备花状银纳米颗粒的表面结构达到最精细的状态且颗粒的尺寸达到微米量级,适合对单颗粒进行定位与光学性质研究。以结构最优化的花状银纳米颗粒为表面增强拉曼散射基底材料,以羟基苯甲酸为探针,对单个和少数颗粒的表面增强拉曼散射效应进行了研究,并借助暗场散射光谱分析了基底的表面增强拉曼散射机理。结果显示,该花状银纳米颗粒因其独特的表面结构为拉曼信号增强提供了大量“热点”。良好的拉曼性能以及较低的制备成本表明,该新型表面增强拉曼散射基底具有很大的应用前景。     

Elimination of oxidation and decomposition by SnCl2 in the SERS study of pyridoxine on a roughened Au electrode

Severe interference from the oxidation and laser carbonization was encountered in the measurements of surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra of pyridoxine (PN) on the roughened gold electrode. However, we found that high‐quality SERS spectra of PN could be obtained by the introduction of SnCl₂, which only has few Raman peaks at low wavenumbers. SnCl₂, as a good reductive, is capable of removing the oxidative species on the gold substrate and the dissolved oxygen in solution, and as a result lowering the open circuit potential (OCP). Sn(II) can also strongly chemically adsorb on the gold surface and interact with PN through coordination/chelation, such that not only to prevent PN from damage by the giant electromagnetic field for the ‘first‐layer’ effect, but also to give rise to very strong Raman scattering signals of PN where chemical enhancement plays an important role. Those are the main reasons for the elimination of the oxidation and decomposition of PN and for the high‐quality SERS spectra of PN. The way the SnCl₂ confines PN within the enhanced electromagnetic field by its ability of adsorption and coordination/chelation can be utilized to improve the routine SERS analysis of analogous type of reactive organic/biomolecules. In addition, this method has been successfully extended to the SERS measurements of PN on the substrates of roughened silver and copper. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Computer simulation of surface-enhanced Raman scattering in nanostructured metamaterials

The simulation of local field fluctuations and surface-enhanced Raman scattering in percolation systems at the percolation threshold is described. An approximate real-space renormalization group method was used in the simulation. It allows one to radically reduce the computation time compared to an exact calculation and to obtain detailed information about the electromagnetic field. The local fields in real macroscopic systems can be calculated by using this approximation. A computer simulation of the local fields in metal island (percolation) films has been performed by the developed method. The calculation has confirmed the existence of giant local field fluctuations. In turn, the local electric field excites Raman scattering. The local fields of surface-enhanced Raman scattering have been calculated for the first time. The dependence of the Raman scattering enhancement factor on the reference frequency and Stokes shift has been derived. An experimental observation of this dependence could be considered as a confirmation of the electromagnetic nature of the enhancement.     

以新型银胶为衬底小鼠血清的表面增强拉曼光谱分析

针对以新型银胶体粒子为表面增强拉曼衬底获得的高信噪比的小鼠血清的表面增强拉曼光谱进行了分析,对小鼠血清拉曼光谱进行了初步指认。文章首先根据银胶体粒子形貌及特性,从电磁场物理增强的角度,分析了表面增强拉曼散射中有关银胶体粒子聚集形成“热点”导致局部电场增强效应的作用机理,并依据“热点”理论的分析,认为这种新型银胶体粒子具有很强的局域电场增强效果。同时运用表面增强拉曼中“热点”的现象,解释了小鼠血清的表面增强拉曼光谱中出现的低含量成分的拉曼光谱现象。希望通过表面增强拉曼光谱,了解血清中某些低含量成分的微小变化,进而能够及时获得机体的状况。研究结果为如何获得高信噪比生物大分子的表面增强拉曼散射光谱,了解丰富的生物分子结构信息提供了一种新的方法,同时也为开拓医学上利用血清进行疾病的早期检测提供了一种分子光谱学手段。     

膜结构对金纳米线阵列表面增强拉曼散射的影响

金纳米线阵列作为表面增强拉曼散射的基底能够产生有效的增强效应,金纳米线阵列通过金线之间的电场耦合产生增强的拉曼信号。在实验中,制备出金纳米线阵列与金纳米刷,两种样品结构不同,金纳米刷的一面带有金膜。用巯基吡啶作为探针分子,金纳米刷的SERS实验显示出很好的增强效应,增强因子为106,不同位点的SERS谱具有区域不均一的特征。而相同实验条件下的金纳米线阵列的增强因子只有102。光学吸收谱表明这两种结构均发生了共振吸收增强电场,对其结构的分析表明,这两种结构具有不同的电场局域化分布,同时金纳米刷中金线上端强烈的电场耦合,这是其具有更好的增强效用的原因。同时,4-MP的表面增强拉曼谱的变化特征体现了化学增强效应的影响。     

Understanding plasmon resonances of metal-coated colloidal crystal monolayers

Metal films deposited over two-dimensional colloidal crystals (MFoCC) constitute a low-cost periodic structure with interesting photonic and plasmonic properties. It has previously been shown that this structure exhibits a behaviour similar to the well-known Extraordinary Optical Transmission (EOT) of metallic hole arrays in planar films. Here, we explore the transmission characteristics of AgFoCC by systematic comparison with that of the bare CC. Furthermore with additional reflectivity measurements we evaluate the AgFoCC overall plasmonic response, which, notably, exhibits a strong plasmon absorption band at wavelengths larger than those of the transmitted maximum. By corroborating these results with finite-difference time-domain electromagnetic simulations, we identify a hybrid metal-dielectric propagative mode in the transmission mechanism. On the contrary a strongly localized mode is responsible for the maximum light absorption by this structure. These results shed new light on the current understanding of this highly promising plasmonic structure, being useful for the design of surface-enhanced Raman scattering and enhanced fluorescence substrates.     

金纳米粒子组装体系的表面增强拉曼光谱特性研究——表面粒子密度与拉曼光谱强度的关系

利用纳米粒子组装制备了金基底———巯基苯胺自组装膜偶联层———金纳米粒子的“三明治”结构,研究了表面粒子密度与偶连层分子的拉曼光谱强度的关系。实验结果显示,该结构对偶连层分子的拉曼光谱有很好的增强效应,增强因子可达１０５。在表面粒子密度较低时,拉曼光谱强度与表面粒子密度曲线呈线形,随着表面粒子密度的增加,曲线出现负偏差并在粒子密度较高区域出现一个平台。     

Multiscale electromagnetic SERS enhancement on self‐assembled micropatterned gold nanoparticle films

In this work, we demonstrate a cascaded, multiplicative electromagnetic enhancement effect in surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) on periodically micropatterned films made of colloidal gold nanoparticles, prepared by a self‐assembly approach, without implying lithography procedures. The multiplicative enhancement effect is obtained by combining surface plasmon near‐field enhancement due to nanoscale features with far‐field photonic coupling by periodic microscale features. The effect is observed for both internal Raman reporters (molecules attached to the Au colloids before their assembly) and external Raman probes (molecules adsorbed on the samples after film assembly). The ability of the patterned films for far‐field light coupling is supported by reflectivity spectra, which present minima/maxima in the visible spectral range. Finite‐difference time‐domain computer simulations of the electric field distribution also support this interpretation. The fabricated dual‐scale SERS substrates exhibit a good spot‐to‐spot reproducibility and time stability, as proved by the SERS response over a time scale longer than 1 month. The experimental demonstration of this cascaded electromagnetic enhancement effect contributes to a better understanding of SERS and can affect future design of SERS substrates. Moreover, such dual‐scale colloidal films prepared by convective self‐assembly can be of general interest for the broader field of nanoparticle‐based devices. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Substrate-Modulated Electromagnetic Resonances in Colloidal Cu2O Nanospheres

Dielectric nanoparticles are expected to complement or even replace plasmonic nanoparticles in many optical and optoelectronic applications, because they exhibit small absorption losses and support strong electric and magnetic resonances simultaneously. Dielectric nanoparticles need to be deposited on various substrates in many applications. Understanding the substrate effect on the electromagnetic resonances of dielectric nanoparticles is of great importance for engineering their resonance properties and designing optical devices. In this study, moderate-refractive-index cuprous oxide nanospheres with uniform sizes and shapes are synthesized. The scattering spectra and images of the nanospheres deposited on three types of substrates are analyzed experimentally and theoretically. When supported on indium tin oxide–coated glass slides and Si wafers, the color of the nanospheres varies from blue, cyan, green, yellow, orange and red, covering almost the entire visible region. When deposited on gold films, the electromagnetic resonances of the nanospheres redshift intensively and a new effective magnetic resonance mode appears. The enhanced Raman scattering reveals that large electromagnetic field enhancements are produced in the gap region between the nanosphere and the substrate. The results shed light on the manipulation of the electromagnetic responses of dielectric nanoparticles and the design of dielectric metamaterials in the presence of various substrates.     

Direct visual evidence for the chemical mechanism of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering via charge transfer: (II) Binding‐site and quantum‐size effects

We describe quantum‐size and binding‐site effects on the chemical and local field enhancement mechanisms of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS), in which the pyridine molecule is adsorbed on one of the vertices of the Ag₂₀ tetrahedron. We first investigated the influence of the binding site on normal Raman scattering (NRS) and excited state properties of optical absorption spectroscopy. Second, we investigated the quantum‐size effect on the electromagnetic (EM) and chemical mechanism from 300 to 1000 nm with charge difference density. It is found that the strong absorption at around 350 nm is mainly the charge transfer (CT) excitation (CT between the molecule and the silver cluster) for large clusters, which is the direct evidence for the chemical enhancement mechanism for SERRS; for a small cluster the strong absorption around 350 nm is mainly intracluster excitation, which is the direct evidence for the EM enhancement mechanism. This conclusion is further confirmed with the general Mie theory. The plasmon peak in EM enhancement will be red‐shifted with the increase of cluster size. The influence of the binding site and quantum‐size effects on NRS, as well as chemical and EM enhancement mechanisms on SERRS, is significant. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Au/TiN复合薄膜制备及其表面增强拉曼光谱研究

表面增强拉曼散射光谱(SERS)已用于环境监测、生物医药、食品卫生等领域,而高活性SERS基底是表面增强拉曼散射光谱技术应用的关键。TiN作为新型等离子材料具有较强的SERS性能,同时化学稳定性及生物相容性较好,但其SERS性能不如贵金属金强。该研究采用氨气还原氮化法和电化学沉积法,在TiN薄膜表面沉积贵金属Au纳米颗粒制备出Au/TiN复合薄膜。在Au/TiN复合薄膜中单质Au和TiN两种物相共存;随着电化学沉积时间延长,TiN薄膜表面单质金纳米颗粒数量逐渐增多,金纳米颗粒尺寸增大,颗粒间距减小。由于金与TiN两者的本征表面等离子共振耦合作用,Au/TiN复合薄膜的共振吸收峰发生了偏移。利用罗丹明6G为拉曼探针分子,对Au/TiN复合薄膜进行SERS性能分析,发现Au/TiN复合薄膜上的R6G探针分子的拉曼峰信号强度随沉积时间延长呈现先增大后减小的规律;当电化学沉积时间为5 min时,R6G拉曼信号峰较高,复合薄膜样品的SERS活性最大。将Au/TiN复合薄膜和Au薄膜分别浸泡在10-3,10-5,10-7,10-8及10-9 mol·L-1 R6G溶液5 min,进行检测限分析,发现Au/TiN复合薄膜检测极限达10-8 mol·L-1,增强因子达到8.82×105,与Au薄膜和TiN薄膜相比,Au/TiN复合薄膜上对R6G探针分子SERS活性最高。这得益于Au/TiN复合膜中表面等离子体产生的耦合效应,使得局域电磁场强度增强,从而引起R6G探针分子拉曼信号增强。通过2D-FDTD模拟电场分布发现Au/TiN,Au及TiN薄膜具有电场增强作用,其中Au/TiN复合薄膜的增强作用尤为显著,这也证实了氮化钛与金纳米颗粒之间存在耦合效应。另外发现TiN与Au之间可能存在电荷转移,促进了4-氨基苯硫酚氧化反应,进而证实了TiN与Au薄膜的协同作用。此外,Au/TiN复合薄膜均匀性较好,相对平均偏差仅为7.58%。由此可见,采用电化学沉积制备的Au/TiN复合薄膜具有作为SERS基底材料的应用潜力。     

Self‐assembly of silver nanocolloids in the Langmuir–Blodgett Film of stearic acid: Evidence of an efficient SERS sensing platform

Highly sensitive surface‐enhanced Raman scattering active substrate obtained by self‐assembly of silver nanocolloids (AgNCs) in the bilayer Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) film of stearic acid (SA) has been reported. Rhodamine 6G (R6G) has been used as the probe molecule to test the efficacy of the as prepared substrate. Gigantic enhancement factors ~10¹² orders of magnitude have been estimated from the surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering [SER(R) S] spectrum of R6G, which proves that the as prepared substrate is superior or comparable with silver nanoparticle as dried AgNC solutions on microscopic slides. The optical properties of the as prepared substrates have been envisaged by ultraviolet‐visible absorption spectra, while their morphological features are mapped through field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) images. A correlation has been drawn between the SER(R) S efficacy and the corresponding FESEM and AFM images of the as prepared substrates. Electric field distributions around the aggregated AgNCs have been estimated with the aid of three‐dimensional finite difference time domain simulation studies. Localized surface plasmon coupling between the nanoaggregated geometries may be altered by lifting the LB film of SA at various surface pressures. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

基于Klarite芯片的表面增强拉曼散射特性研究

本文介绍了一种商用的表面增强拉曼芯片(Klarite),并对其表面形貌、拉曼活性进行了表征和测试分析.Klarite芯片由于独特的倒金字塔形设计使得其具有较好的拉曼活性、稳定性和重现性,为生命科学和分析化学研究提供了有力的研究工具.此外,我们对Klarite芯片在外电磁场作用下的表面电场分布进行了模拟,发现一个结构单元...     

A study on the spectral characteristics of surface enhanced Raman scattering based on far‐field extinction and near‐field electromagnetic field intensity of 2D nanostructures

A new solid‐state electrochemical patterning technique was applied to fabrication of high‐resolution silver bowtie antennas and hexagonal arrays. These silver nanofeatures were used to investigate the relation among surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factor (EF), extinction, local electromagnetic (EM) field maxima of the features. It is found that spectral extinction property or the plasmonic resonance of a given SERS substrate alone is not sufficient for determining optimal EF; the number of points of high local EM field, or ‘hot spots’, and the distribution of those high‐field spots, too, play a role. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.