TiO_2/Ag composite nanowires for a recyclable surface enhanced Raman scattering substrate

Multifunctional TiO2/Ag composite nanowires are fabricated with a hydrothermal method by precipitating Ag nanoparticles （NPs） on the surfaces of TiO2 nanowires. This hierarchical one-dimensional （1D） nanostructure can be used as a surface enhanced Raman scattering （SERS） substrate with high sensitivity, for detecting the rhodamine 6G （R6G） in a wide range of low concentrations （from 1 × 10 6 M to 1 × 10-12 M）. In addition, the substrate can be self-cleaned under the irradiation of ultraviolet （UV） light due to the superior photocatalytic capacity of the TiO2/Ag composite nanostructure, making the recycled use of SERS substrates closer to reality. With both the evident SERS performance and high efficiency of photocatalytic capacity, such TiOz/Ag composite nanowires demonstrate considerable potential in the chemical sensing of organic pollutants.