Surface enhanced vibrational (IR and Raman) spectroscopy in the design of chemosensors based on ester functionalized p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene hosts

Surface-enhanced IR (SEIR) and Raman scattering (SERS) have been employed to study the adsorption of ester functionalized tert-butyl calix4]arenes on Ag and Au nanostructured surfaces as well as their complexes with pyrene. The influence of adsorption and complexation with pyrene on the host calixarene structure was tested for two different calixarene molecules bearing carboethoxy groups (CH(3)CH(2)COOCH(2)-) in the low rim at positions 1,3- and 1,2,3,4-. The results obtained with SEIR were compared to those obtained with SERS, to better understand the interaction mechanism of the studied calixarenes with the metallic surfaces and the ligand as well as to investigate the structure/selectivity relationship of these two surface techniques in the analysis of recognition problems in which these ester functionalized calixarene molecules are involved.