A surface-enhanced Raman scattering method for detection of trace glutathione on the basis of immobilized silver nanoparticles and crystal violet probe

Unsatisfactory sensitivity and stability for molecules with low polarizability is still a problem limiting the practical applications of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique. By preparing immobilized silver nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄/Ag) through depositing silver on the surface of magnetite particles, a highly sensitive and selective SERS method for the detection of trace glutathione (GSH) was proposed on the basis of a system of Fe₃O₄/Ag nanoparticles and crystal violet (CV), in which the target GSH competed with the CV probe for the adsorption on the Fe₃O₄/Ag nanoparticles. Raman insensitive GSH replaced the highly Raman sensitive CV adsorbed on the surface of Fe₃O₄/Ag particles. This replacement led to a strong decrease of the CV SERS signal, which was used to determine the concentration of GSH. Under optimal conditions, a linear response was established between the intensity decrease of the CV SERS signal and the GSH concentration in the range of 50–700 nmol L⁻¹ with a detection limit of 40 nmol L⁻¹. The use of a Fe₃O₄/Ag substrate provided not only a great SERS enhancement but also a good stability, which guarantees the reproducibility of the proposed method. Its use for the determination of GSH in practical blood samples and cell extract yielded satisfactory results.     

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering for perchlorate detection using cystamine-modified gold nanoparticles

Perchlorate (ClO₄⁻) has recently emerged as a widespread environmental contaminant found in groundwater and surface water, and there is a great need for rapid detection and monitoring of this contaminant. This study presents a new technique using cystamine-modified gold nanoparticles as a substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection of perchlorate at low concentrations. A detection limit of 5 × 10⁻⁶ M (0.5 mg/L) has been achieved using this method without sample preconcentration. This result was attributed to a strong plasmon enhancement by gold metal surfaces and the electrostatic attraction of ClO₄⁻ onto positively charged, cystamine-modified gold nanoparticles at a low pH. The methodology also was found to be reproducible, quantitative, and not susceptible to significant interference from the presence of anions such as sulfate, phosphate, nitrate and chloride at concentrations <1 mM, making it potentially suitable for rapid screening and routine analysis of perchlorate in environmental samples.     

Silver nanoparticles active as surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrates prepared by high energy irradiation

In surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique the preparation of metal substrates containing minimum hindrance from impurities is an important issue. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) active as SERS substrates and having the above-mentioned advantage, were obtained by electron beam irradiation of Ag⁺ aqueous solutions. Ag⁺ ions were reduced by free radicals radiolytically generated in solution without the addition of chemical reductants or stabilizing agents.The metal colloids were characterised by UV-Vis spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy, monitoring the nanoparticles’ growth process that depends on the irradiation dose and the initial AgNO₃ concentration. Nanoparticles of long-time stability and with different size and shape, included silver nanocubes, were synthesised by varying the irradiation dose. Different tests on the SERS activity of Ag NPs obtained by electron beam irradiation were performed by using benzenethiol as a probing molecule, achieving a good magnification of the adsorbate Raman bands.     

Quantitative detection of dye labelled DNA using surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) from silver nanoparticles

The detection of dye labelled DNA by surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) is reported. The dye labels used are commercially available and have not previously been used as SERRS dyes. Detection limits using two excitation frequencies were determined for each label. This expands the range of labels which can be used for surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering with silver nanoparticles.     

Direct detection of DNA using 3D surface enhanced Raman scattering hotspot matrix

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are evaporatively self‐assembled into the 3D surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) hotspot matrix with the assistant of glycerol to improve the spectral reproducibility in direct DNA detection. AgNPs and DNA in the glycerol‐stabilized 3D SERS hotspot matrix are found to form flexible sandwich structures through electrostatic interaction where neighboring AgNPs create uniform and homogeneous localized surface plasmon resonance coupling environments for central DNA. Nearly two orders of magnitude extra SERS enhancement, more stable peak frequency and narrower peak full width at half maximum can therefore be obtained in DNA SERS spectra, which ensures highly stable and reproducible SERS signals in direct detection of both single strand DNA and double strand DNA utilizing the 3D SERS hotspot matrix. By normalizing the SERS spectra using phosphate backbone as internal standard, identification of single base variation in oligonucleotides, determination of DNA hybridization events and recognition of chemical modification on bases (hexanethiol‐capped at 5’ end) have been demonstrated experimentally. This proposed 3D SERS hotspot matrix opens a novel perspective in manipulating plasmonic nanoparticles to construct SERS platforms and would make the surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy a more practical and reliable tool in direct DNA detection.     

Uniform arrays of gold nanoparticles with different surface roughness for surface enhanced Raman scattering

Uniform arrays of coarse and smooth gold nanoparticles with diameter about 130 nm were successfully synthesized through seed-mediated growth method, separately. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) have been used to study the formation and structure of the nanocomposites. The high enhancement factor for surface-enhanced Raman scattering of coarse and smooth gold nanoparticles were estimated to be about 3.1 × 10⁶ and 2.0 × 10⁶, respectively. It is evident that the coarse gold nanostructures has higher influence factor than the smooth gold nanostructures. Therefore, these unique properties of the coarse Au nanoparticles appear to be very promising for applications as high-performance SERS substrates.     

Synthesis of mesoporous-silica coated multi-branched gold nanoparticles for surface enhanced Raman scattering evaluation of 4-bromomethcathinone

Mesoporous silica-coated multi-branched gold nanoparticles (bAu@mesoSiO₂) aiming for enhanced Raman sensing for 4-bromomethcathinone (4-BMC) detection is reported. In this work, we present an effective strategy to probe the Raman signal of 4-MBC. Morphologies and optical properties of the synthesized materials with different [Au³⁺]/[Au⁰] ratios are characterized utilizing transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV–vis and mid-infrared spectroscopy. Both experimental and theoretical (simulation) studies were investigated. Taking advantages of gold core branches that provide highly localized and strongly enhanced electromagnetic fields due to plasmon resonance, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is observed. The experimental results show that the SERS intensity exhibits a 100-fold increase with the increased average length and quantity of gold branches (nano tips). The analytical performance yielded a detection limit of 0.1?mg/ml for the 4-MBC target within 5?mins. The sensing method will likely find further improvement and broad use in the forensic science. Besides rapid detection and portability, the combination of the Raman effect and enhanced materials imparts other notable advantages, such as its non-contact and free of reagents.     

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering of 4-aminobenzenethiol on silver nanoparticles substrate

Active surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) silver nanoparticles substrate was prepared by multiple depositions of Ag nanoparticles on glass slides. The substrate is based on five depositions of Ag nanoparticles on 3-aminopropyl-trimetoxisilane (APTMS) modified glass slides, using APTMS sol–gel as linker molecules between silver layers. The SERS performance of the substrate was investigated using 4-aminobenzenethiol (4-ABT) as Raman probe molecule. The spectral analyses reveal a 4-ABT Raman signal enhancement of band intensities, which allow the detection of this compound in different solutions. The average SERS intensity decreases significantly in 4-ABT diluted solutions (from 10⁻⁴ to 10⁻⁶ mol L⁻¹), but the compound may still be detected with high signal/noise ratio. The obtained results demonstrate that the Ag nanoparticles sensor has a great potential as SERS substrate.     

Non-labeling multiplex surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

In this paper, we report multiplex SERS based VOCs detection with a leaning nano-pillar substrate. The VOCs analyte molecules adsorbed at the tips of the nano-pillars produced SERS signal due to the field enhancement occurring at the localized surface plasmon hot spots between adjacent leaning nano-pillars. In this experiment, detections of acetone and ethanol vapor at different concentrations were demonstrated. The detection limits were found to be 0.0017 ng and 0.0037 ng for ethanol and acetone vapor molecules respectively. Our approach is a non-labeling method such that it does not require the incorporation of any chemical sensing layer for the enrichment of gas molecules on sensor surface. The leaning nano-pillar substrate also showed highly reproducible SERS signal in cyclic VOCs detection, which can reduce the detection cost in practical applications. Further, multiplex SERS detection on different combination of acetone and ethanol vapor was also successfully demonstrated. The vibrational fingerprints of molecular structures provide specific Raman peaks for different VOCs contents. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first multiplex VOCs detection using SERS. We believe that this work may lead to a portable device for multiplex, specific and highly sensitive detection of complex VOCs samples that can find potential applications in exhaled breath analysis, hazardous gas analysis, homeland security and environmental monitoring.     

A simple approach for ultrasensitive detection of bisphenols by multiplexed surface-enhanced Raman scattering

Bisphenol A (BPA) is well known for its use in plastic manufacture and thermal paper production despite its risk of health toxicity as an endocrine disruptor in humans. Since the publication of new legislation regarding the use of BPA, manufacturers have begun to replace BPA with other phenolic molecules such as bisphenol F (BPF) and bisphenol B (BPB), but there are no guarantees regarding the health safety of these compounds at this time. In this context, a very simple, cheap and fast surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) method was developed for the sensitive detection of these molecules in spiked tap water solutions. Silver nanoparticles were used as SERS substrates. An original strategy was employed to circumvent the issue of the affinity of bisphenols for metallic surfaces and the silver nanoparticles surface was functionalized using pyridine in order to improve again the sensitivity of the detection. Semi-quantitative detections were performed in tap water solutions at a concentrations range from 0.25 to 20 μg L⁻¹ for BPA and BPB and from 5 to 100 μg L⁻¹ for BPF. Moreover, a feasibility study for performing a multiplex-SERS detection of these molecules was also performed before successfully implementing the developed SERS method on real samples.     

Wide range temperature detection with hybrid nanoparticles traced by surface-enhanced Raman scattering

We report on the fabrication of a class of surface-enhanced Raman scattering(SERS)active thermometers,which consists of60 nm gold nanoparticles,encoded with Raman-active dyes,and a layer of thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)(PNIPAM)brush with different chain lengths.These SERS-active nanoparticles can be optimized to maintain spectrally silent when staying as single particles in dispersion.Increasing temperature in a wide range from 25 to 55°C can reversibly induce the interparticle self-aggregation and turn on the SERS fingerprint signals with up to 58-fold of enhancement by taking advantage of the interparticle plasmonic coupling generated in the process of thermo-induced nanoparticles self-aggregation.Moreover,the most significative point is that these SERS probes could maintain their response to temperature and present all fingerprint signals in the presence of a colored complex.However,the UV-Vis spectra can distinguish the differences faintly and the solution color shows little change in such complex mixture.This proof-of-concept and Raman technique applied here allow for dynamic SERS platform for onsite temperature detection in a wide temperature range and offer unique advantages over other detection schemes.     

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering measurements on silver nanoparticles covered with differently formed platinum films

Gold and silver electromagnetic nanoresonators covered by a thin layer of platinum are often used to study adsorption of various molecules on “model platinum surfaces” with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy. In this contribution spectra of pyridine adsorbed on films formed from core–shell Ag@Pt and Ag@Ag–Pt nanoparticles and pure Pt or Ag nanoparticles were measured using a confocal Raman microscope. The SERS spectra of pyridine adsorbed on alloy Ag@Ag–Pt nanoparticles could not be obtained as a linear combination of spectra measured on pure Ag and Pt surfaces. In other words, for silver electromagnetic nanoresonators covered by platinum there is no simple correlation between the “quality” of the deposited Pt layer and the relative intensity of SERS bands characteristic for adsorbate interacting with silver. The SERS spectra accumulated from various places of a film formed from Ag@Pt or Ag@Ag–Pt nanoclusters may differ significantly. Using Ag@Pt nanoparticles with practically negligible amount of Ag on the surface (as per the stripping measurement), it is possible to record SERS spectrum in which the contribution characteristic for pyridine adsorbed on the Ag surface is well visible. It means that, even for macroscopic samples of core–shell Ag–Pt nanoparticles, averaging of many spectra measured at various locations of the sample should be carried out to characterize reliably their properties.     

An investigation of the surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) from a new substrate of silver-modified silver electrode by magnetron sputtering

'Pure' silver nanoparticles on silver electrode were prepared by magnetron sputtering. The silver-modified silver electrode has good stability and the silver nanoparticles on silver electrode have homogeneous size distribution. Compared with the silver colloid modified silver electrode, there were no any extraneous component ions on the electrode, for the modified silver nanoparticles are prepared by magnetron sputtering. Synchronously, we obtained much higher quality SERS spectra of adenine molecules on the silver electrode modified by magnetron sputtering (SEMMS), and the study of the adsorption behavior of adenine on the silver-modified silver electrode by surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) indicated that the silver-modified silver electrode was highly efficient substrates for SERS investigation. From the rich information on the SEMMS obtained from high-quality potential-dependent SERS, we may deduce the adsorption behavior of adenine and the probable SERS mechanism in the process. The probable reasons are given.     

Semi-quantitative trace analysis of nuclear fast red by surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering

The dye nuclear fast red has been detected and determined semi-quantitatively by means of surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) and surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), using laser exciting wavelengths of 514.5 and 632.8 nm, respectively, by employing a citrate-reduced silver colloid. A good linear correlation is observed for the dependence of the intensities of the SERRS bands at 989 cm⁻¹ (R=0.9897) and 1278 cm⁻¹ (R=0.9872) on dye concentration over the range 10⁻⁹ to 10⁻⁷ M, when using an exciting wavelength of 514.5 nm. At dye concentrations above 10⁻⁷ M, the concentration dependence of the SERRS signals is non-linear. This is almost certainly due to the coverage of the colloidal silver particles being in excess of a full monolayer of the dye. A linear correlation is also observed for the dependence of the intensities of the SERS bands at 989 cm⁻¹ (R=0.9739) and 1278 cm⁻¹ (R=0.9838) on the dye concentration over the range 10⁻⁸ to 10⁻⁶ M when using an exciting wavelength of 632.8 nm. Strong fluorescence prevented collection of resonance Raman scattering (RRS) spectra from powdered samples or aqueous solutions of the dye using an exciting wavelength of 514.5 nm, but weak bands were observed in the spectra obtained from both powdered and aqueous samples of the dye using an exciting wavelength of 632.8 nm. A study of the pH dependence of SERRS/SERS and UV–VIS absorption spectra revealed the presence of different ionisation states of the dye. The limits of detection for nuclear fast red by SERRS (514.5 nm), SERS (632.8 nm) and visible spectroscopy (535 nm) are 9, 89 and 1000 ng ml⁻¹, respectively.     

银纳米粒子沉积含有氧空位的钒酸铋能够提高其近红外光催化性能（英文）

钒酸铋因其独有的廉价、低毒性、热稳定性和高氧化性能等特性而备受瞩目,是利用太阳能降解污染物、水分解等应用方面最优选择的半导体纳米材料之一.选择表面粗糙多孔尺寸均匀的橄榄状钒酸铋有助于吸附更多的电子受体参与到半导体表面的氧化还原反应当中,从而提高其光催化活性.另外,太阳能谱中紫外光占不到5%,可见光占45%,与传统的半导体TiO_2材料相比,钒酸铋禁带宽度在2.4 eV左右,能较好地吸收太阳光能实现光能转化.但是太阳光中近一半的光能属于近红外,不能被传统的纯相钒酸铋所利用.为了更好地利用太阳能,可将氧空位缺陷引入到钒酸铋晶体中,以实现近红外光能的转化利用.氧空位缺陷在半导体材料中不仅能够吸收近红外光,在低于导带的位置形成电子传输的桥梁,而且能够吸附更多的氧分子转化成活性物种.另一方面,氧空位缺陷态的引入使半导体钒酸铋材料暴露更多的活性位点,参与到溶液的氧化还原反应中.由于钒酸铋光激发的载流子浓度有限,并且光生电子-空穴容易复合,本文采用银纳米粒子负载在钒酸铋表面,利用其等离子共振效应产生的热电子与氧空位缺陷的协同作用,能够提高其载流子传输速率,抑制光生电子-空穴复合,达到更优的光能到化学能转化的目的.基于此,本文采用电子自旋共振光谱(ESR),X射线光电子能谱(XPS)和紫外可见光谱(UV-Vis)等手段研究了氧空位缺陷引入到钒酸铋以及Ag纳米粒子担载于橄榄状半导体材料上对光催化降解罗丹明B染料中太阳能驱动活性的影响.ESR结果证明,在测试过程中橄榄状钒酸铋材料吸收了更多的电子,表明存在很多氧空位缺陷.XPS结果表明出现高浓度的吸收氧峰意味着钒酸铋材料上存在大量氧空位缺陷;银纳米粒子成功负载在具有氧空位缺陷的钒酸铋材料上.UV-Vis结果表明该材料光吸收范围扩展到近红外光范围,其禁带宽度比传统纯相钒酸铋减小,Ag-BiVO_4-OV样品的导价带位置发生明显变化.因此,由于氧空位和银纳米粒子存在于橄榄状钒酸铋主体中,其光催化降解罗丹明B的效率远远高于纯相钒酸铋样品.由此可见氧空位缺陷和银纳米粒子的引入使得半导体光催化材料光学性能正效应增加.Supporting Information for Ag nanoparticles deposited on oxygen-vacancy-containing BiV O4 for enhanced near-infrared photocatalytic activity Chunjing Shi,Xiaoli Dong*,Xiuying Wang,Hongchao Ma,Xiufang Zhang School of Light Industry and Chemical Engineering,Dalian Polytechnic University,Dalian 116034,Liaoning,China*Corresponding author.E-mail:dongxl@dlpu.edu.cn On the other hand,the nitrogen sorption isotherm of the reactions,but also can provide more surface active sites for as-prepared samples possesses an obvious condensation step oxygen activation and reduction,and thereby positively around P/P0=0.5-0.9,which is typical hysteresis loops of facilitating the reaction process and endowing the catalyst with mesoporous materials(Fig.S1).It is indicated that the robust redox kinetics.as-prepared Ag-BiV O4-OV possesses the mesoporous structure To further prove remarkable photocatalytic activities of the(Fig.S2).In addition,the Ag-BiV O4-OV exhibits ultra-large as-prepared samples,the photocatalytic activities of the typical surface area(34.8 m3/g),which is more than 2 times larger samples based on previous report was listed(Table S1).This than that of pure BiV O4(Fig.S1).The novel mesoporous statistics indicated that the as-prepared Ag-BiV O4-OV reveals structure and larger surface area not only can promote the more excellent photocatalytic performance.diffusion of active species and accelerate subsequent surface50Ag-Bi VO-OV41)-g3m40(c d Bi VO4be30ords a20me u olV1000.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0Relative pressure(P/P)0Fig.S1.N2-sorption isotherm of pure BiV O4 and Ag-BiV O4-OV.Ag-Bi VO4-OV Bi VO41)-mn1-g3m(c D d V/d0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80Pore size(nm)Fig.S2.Pore size distributions of pure BiV O4 and Ag-BiV O4-OV.Table S1Summary for the photocatalytic activities of the typical samples.Sample Amount Amount of dye Light source Time Degradation rate Reference Ag-BiV O4-OV 20 mg 50 mL RhB(10 mg/L)simulated sunlight 100 min 99%this work mono-dispersed m-BiV O4 0.1 g 50 mL RhB(15μmol/L)visible light 10 h 99%[1]BiV O4–Ag/Co3O4 100 mg 50 mL RhB(10 mg/L)simulated sunlight 120 min 97%[2]the BiV O-4 80 mg 80 mL RhB(1×105 mol/L)visible light 6 h 97%[3]Dy-BiV O4 50 mg 50 mL(10 mg/L)visible light 10 h 66.9%[4]m-BiV O4 0.2 g 100 mL of RhB(0.01 mmol/L)visible light 150 min 98%[5]BiV O4/CeO 2 50 mg 50 mL RhB(2×10-5 mol/L)visible light 210 min 90%[6]     

Cu掺杂TiO_2作为SERS基底的研究

本文采用溶胶-水热法制备了TiO2及Cu掺杂的TiO2纳米粒子作为表面增强拉曼光谱(SERS)活性基底,观察到当4-巯基苯甲酸吸附在3%Cu掺杂的TiO2表面上时,其SERS信号得到了最大程度的增强.Cu离子掺杂进TiO2晶格时会使TiO2表面的缺陷浓度(表面态)得到增加,一定量的缺陷浓度对TiO2-to-Molecule的电荷转移机理起到促进作用,进一步证明了化学增强机理在SERS现象的贡献.     

The enhanced photo-stability of defective Ag3PO4 tetrahedron prepared using tripolyphosphate

Ag₃PO₄ is an excellent photocatalyst under visible light irradiation. However, the low stability due to photo-corrosion is still an obstacle in its application. It is a big challenge to improve stability using synthesis modification. Here, the photocatalyst stability enhancement was successfully prepared by tripolyphosphate. Photocatalyst was prepared by reacting AgNO₃ solution with STPP (sodium tripolyphosphate) solution to form a white suspension. The addition of phosphate solution to the white suspension produces yellow Ag₃PO₄ with a new type of defective photocatalyst. The XPS measurement showed that the increase of STPP concentration significantly decreased the Ag/P atomic ratio, indicating the silver vacancy formation on the surface of Ag₃PO₄. The photocatalytic reaction formed a metallic Ag with a lower d-space in the cube structure occurred in the silver vacancy of Ag₃PO₄. This defect increases the interaction of metallic silver and Ag₃PO₄. The enhanced photo-stability might be induced by metallic silver that can act as a photogenerated electron acceptor.     

DNA detection by dye labeled oligonucleotides using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy

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Characterization of 11-mercaptoundecanoic and 3-mercaptopropionic acids adsorbed on silver by surface-enhanced Raman scattering

Functionalized n-alkanethiols such as 11-mercaptoundecanoic (MUA) and 3-mercaptopropionic (MPA) acids are likely to adsorb in silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) solely through the thiol group (-SH) or also involving the carboxylate group (−COO⁻) in their structures. The relative tendency is closely related to pH conditions, solvent or the surface potential of the metallic nanoparticles. The SERS effect (Surface Enhancement Raman Scattering) was used for improving the understanding of MUA and MPA group interaction as well as the orientation of these organic compounds adsorbed on AgNPs and the influence of Cu(II) in solution. When analyzing the MPA SERS spectrum, it was verified that the thiol moiety was preferred to adsorb on the AgNPs surface in the thiolate form, presenting both anti and gauche conformations in both acidic and basic media. MUA SERS spectrum however, indicated that solely an anti conformation for the thiol moiety adsorbed on the AgNPs surface in both acidic and basic media. Adding Cu²⁺ ion resulted in coordination to the carboxyl or carboxylate moieties was confirmed by the downshift of the band assigned to OCO stretching. The presence of Cu(II) increased the tendency of gauche conformation for MPA; the coordination of MUA to Cu(II) resulted in a more upright conformation of the carboxylic/carboxylate moieties in both acidic and basic media, respectively.     

A rapid and simple chemical method for the preparation of Ag colloids for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy using the Ag mirror reaction

Colloidal silver (Ag) nanoparticles (AgNP) have been widely used for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) applications. We report a simple, rapid and effective method to prepare AgNP colloids for SERS using the classic organic chemistry Ag mirror reaction with Tollens’ reagent. The AgNP colloid prepared with this process was characterized using SEM, and the reaction conditions further optimized using SERS measurements. It was found that Ag mirror reaction conditions that included 20 mM AgNO₃, 5 min reaction time, and 0.5 M glucose produced AgNP colloids with an average size of 319.1 nm (s.d ± 128.1). These AgNP colloids exhibited a significant SERS response when adenine was used as the reporter molecule. The usefulness of these new AgNP colloids was demonstrated by detecting the nucleotides adenosine 5′-mono-phosphate (AMP), guanosine 5′-monophosphate (GMP), cytidine 5′-monophosphate (CMP), and uridine 5′-monophosphate (UMP). A detection limit of 500 nM for AMP was achieved with the as-prepared AgNP colloid. The bacterium Mycoplasma pneumoniae was also easily detected in laboratory culture with these SERS substrates. These findings attest to the applicability of this AgNP colloid for the sensitive and specific detection of both small biomolecules and microorganisms.