Nanosensors based on responsive polymer brushes and gold nanoparticle enhanced transmission surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy

Swelling (and shrinking) of poly(2-vinylpyridine), P2VP, polymer brushes, caused by pH changes, could be readily monitored by transmission surface plasmon resonance, T-SPR, spectroscopy. Gold nanoparticles attached to the P2VP polymer brushes dramatically enhanced the pH-induced shift in the T-SPR absorption spectra. (A 50 nm shift of the absorption maximum of the T-SPR spectrum of the supporting gold nanoislands was observed upon changing the pH from 5.0 to 2.0, corresponding to a swelling of the polymer brushes from 8.1 +/- 0.7 to 24.0 +/- 2.0 nm. Same shift in the opposite direction was observed upon changing the pH from 2.0 to 5.0.)