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Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
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    TopUp SERS substrates with integrated internal standard
    (Basel : MDPI, 2018) Patze, Sophie; Hübner, Uwe; Weber, Karina; Cialla-May, Dana; Popp, Jürgen
    Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is known as a molecular-specific and highly sensitive method. In order to enable the routine application of SERS, powerful SERS substrates are of great importance. Within this manuscript, a TopUp SERS substrate is introduced which is fabricated by a top-down process based on microstructuring as well as a bottom-up generation of silver nanostructures. The Raman signal of the support material acts as an internal standard in order to improve the quantification capabilities. The analyte molecule coverage of sulfamethoxazole on the surface of the nanostructures is characterized by the SERS signal evolution fitted by a Langmuir–Freundlich isotherm.
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    Role of Graphene in Constructing Multilayer Plasmonic SERS Substrate with Graphene/AgNPs as Chemical Mechanism - Electromagnetic Mechanism Unit
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Liu, Lu; Hou, Shuting; Zhao, Xiaofei; Liu, Chundong; Li, Zhen; Li, Chonghui; Xu, Shicai; Wang, Guilin; Yu, Jing; Zhang, Chao; Man, Baoyuan
    Graphene–metal substrates have received widespread attention due to their superior surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) performance. The strong coupling between graphene and metal particles can greatly improve the SERS performance and thus broaden the application fields. The way in which to make full use of the synergistic effect of the hybrid is still a key issue to improve SERS activity and stability. Here, we used graphene as a chemical mechanism (CM) layer and Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs) as an electromagnetic mechanism (EM) layer, forming a CM–EM unit and constructing a multi-layer hybrid structure as a SERS substrate. The improved SERS performance of the multilayer nanostructure was investigated experimentally and in theory. We demonstrated that the Raman enhancement effect increased as the number of CM–EM units increased, remaining nearly unchanged when the CM–EM unit was more than four. The limit of detection was down to 10−14 M for rhodamine 6G (R6G) and 10−12 M for crystal violet (CV), which confirmed the ultrahigh sensitivity of the multilayer SERS substrate. Furthermore, we investigated the reproducibility and thermal stability of the proposed multilayer SERS substrate. On the basis of these promising results, the development of new materials and novel methods for high performance sensing and biosensing applications will be promoted.
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    Nanostructured silver substrates with stable and universal sers properties: Application to organic molecules and semiconductor nanoparticles
    (New York, NY [u.a.] : Springer, 2010) Chursanova, M.V.; Dzhagan, V.M.; Yukhymchuk, V.O.; Lytvyn, O.S.; Valakh, M.Y.; Khodasevich, I.A.; Lehmann, D.; Zahn, D.R.T.; Waurisch, C.; Hickey, S.G.
    Nanostructured silver films have been prepared by thermal deposition on silicon, and their properties as SERS substrates investigated. The optimal conditions of the post-growth annealing of the substrates were established. Atomic force microscopy study revealed that the silver films with relatively dense and homogeneous arrays of 60-80-nm high pyramidal nanoislands are the most efficient for SERS of both organic dye and inorganic nanoparticles analytes. The noticeable enhancement of the Raman signal from colloidal nanoparticles with the help of silver island films is reported for the first time. © 2009 The Author(s).
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    Comparative Analysis of Raman Signal Amplifying Effectiveness of Silver Nanostructures with Different Morphology
    (Basel : MDPI, 2022) Yakimchuk, Dzmitry V.; Khubezhov, Soslan A.; Prigodich, Uladzislau V.; Tishkevich, Daria I.; Trukhanov, Sergei V.; Trukhanov, Alex V.; Sivakov, Vladimir; Kaniukov, Egor Y.
    To increase the attractiveness of the practical application of molecular sensing methods, the experimental search for the optimal shape of silver nanostructures allowing to increase the Raman cross section by several orders of magnitude is of great interest. This paper presents a detailed study of spatially separated plasmon-active silver nanostructures grown in SiO2/Si template pores with crystallite, dendrite, and “sunflower-like” nanostructures shapes. Nile blue and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole were chosen as the model analytes for comparative evaluation of the Raman signal amplification efficiency using these structures. It was discussed the features of the structures for the enhancement of Raman intensity. Finally, we showed that silver crystals, dendrites, and “sunflower-like” nanostructures in SiO2/Si template could be used as the relevant materials for Raman signal amplification, but with different efficiency.
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    The First Products of Aniline Oxidation – SERS Spectroelectrochemistry
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2019) Morávková, Zuzana; Dmitrieva, Evgenia
    There are different opinions on the first products of aniline oxidation throughout the scientific community. While electrochemists basically accept only linear oligomers with repeating units joint in para positions, chemists have proposed formation of various branched and polycyclic oligomers. It was also suggested that one of these structures, N-phenyl-phenazinium cation, is responsible for the adherence of polyaniline films to substrates. In this work, a surface enhanced Raman spectroscopic and spectroelectrochemical analysis of the species adsorbed onto gold surface in aniline-containing solution at pH 1 and 5 is presented. The influence of the pH value on the oligomer structure is declared. The results are discussed in the context of linear and branched/phenazine-like aniline oligomers. © 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
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    The morphology of silver nanoparticles prepared by enzyme-induced reduction
    (Frankfurt, M. : Beilstein-Institut zur Förderung der Chemischen Wissenschaften, 2012) Schneidewind, H.; Schüler, T.; Strelau, K.K.; Weber, K.; Cialla, D.; Diegel, M.; Mattheis, R.; Berger, A.; Möller, R.; Popp, J.
    Silver nanoparticles were synthesized by an enzyme-induced growth process on solid substrates. In order to customize the enzymatically grown nanoparticles (EGNP) for analytical applications in biomolecular research, a detailed study was carried out concerning the time evolution of the formation of the silver nanoparticles, their morphology, and their chemical composition. Therefore, silvernanoparticle films of different densities were investigated by using scanning as well as transmission electron microscopy to examine their structure. Cross sections of silver nanoparticles, prepared for analysis by transmission electron microscopy were additionally studied by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy in order to probe their chemical composition. The surface coverage of substrates with silver nanoparticles and the maximum particle height were determined by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy. Variations in the silver-nanoparticle films depending on the conditions during synthesis were observed. After an initial growth state the silver nanoparticles exhibit the so-called desert-rose or nanoflower-like structure. This complex nanoparticle structure is in clear contrast to the auto-catalytically grown spherical particles, which maintain their overall geometrical appearance while increasing their diameter. It is shown, that the desert-rose-like silver nanoparticles consist of single-crystalline plates of pure silver. The surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopic (SERS) activity of the EGNP structures is promising due to the exceptionally rough surface structure of the silver nanoparticles. SERS measurements of the vitamin riboflavin incubated on the silver nanoparticles are shown as an exemplary application for quantitative analysis.
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    Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Metabolite Pyocyanin in Water and Saliva by Employing the SERS Technique
    (Basel : MDPI, 2017) Zukovskaja, Olga; Jahn, Izabella-Jolan; Weber, Karina; Cialla-May, Dana; Popp, Jürgen
    Pyocyanin (PYO) is a metabolite specific for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In the case of immunocompromised patients, it is currently considered a biomarker for life-threating Pseudomonas infections. In the frame of this study it is shown, that PYO can be detected in aqueous solution by employing surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) combined with a microfluidic platform. The achieved limit of detection is 0.5 μM. This is ~2 orders of magnitude below the concentration of PYO found in clinical samples. Furthermore, as proof of principle, the SERS detection of PYO in the saliva of three volunteers was also investigated. This body fluid can be collected in a non-invasive manner and is highly chemically complex, making the detection of the target molecule challenging. Nevertheless, PYO was successfully detected in two saliva samples down to 10 μM and in one sample at a concentration of 25 μM. This indicates that the molecules present in saliva do not inhibit the efficient adsorption of PYO on the surface of the employed SERS active substrates.
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    Morphology and Microstructure Evolution of Gold Nanostructures in the Limited Volume Porous Matrices
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Yakimchuk, Dzmitry V.; Bundyukova, Victoria D.; Ustarroz, Jon; Terryn, Herman; Baert, Kitty; Kozlovskiy, Artem L.; Zdorovets, Maxim V.; Khubezhov, Soslan A.; Trukhanov, Alex V.; Trukhanov, Sergei V.; Panina, Larissa V.; Arzumanyan, Grigory M.; Mamatkulov, Kahramon Z.; Tishkevich, Daria I.; Kaniukov, Egor Y.; Sivakov, Vladimir
    The modern development of nanotechnology requires the discovery of simple approaches that ensure the controlled formation of functional nanostructures with a predetermined morphology. One of the simplest approaches is the self-assembly of nanostructures. The widespread implementation of self-assembly is limited by the complexity of controlled processes in a large volume where, due to the temperature, ion concentration, and other thermodynamics factors, local changes in diffusion-limited processes may occur, leading to unexpected nanostructure growth. The easiest ways to control the diffusion-limited processes are spatial limitation and localized growth of nanostructures in a porous matrix. In this paper, we propose to apply the method of controlled self-assembly of gold nanostructures in a limited pore volume of a silicon oxide matrix with submicron pore sizes. A detailed study of achieved gold nanostructures' morphology, microstructure, and surface composition at different formation stages is carried out to understand the peculiarities of realized nanostructures. Based on the obtained results, a mechanism for the growth of gold nanostructures in a limited volume, which can be used for the controlled formation of nanostructures with a predetermined geometry and composition, has been proposed. The results observed in the present study can be useful for the design of plasmonic-active surfaces for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy-based detection of ultra-low concentration of different chemical or biological analytes, where the size of the localized gold nanostructures is comparable with the spot area of the focused laser beam.
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    Plasmon-driven dimerization via S-S chemical bond in an aqueous environment
    (London : Nature Publishing Group, 2014) Cui, L.; Wang, P.; Chen, X.; Fang, Y.; Zhang, Z.; Sun, M.
    The surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra of thioanisole are experimentally investigated in an electrochemical environment in this study. Two Raman peaks, which depend strongly not only on electric potential but also on the local surface plasmon resonances (LSPR), have been observed. Theoretical calculations reveal that thioanisole is first dissociated from thiophenol via the S-CH3 bond; plasmons then drive the dimerisation of thiophenol via the S-S bond, which is strongly potential dependent. One Raman peak corresponds to the S-S vibrational mode of the thiophenol dimer, and the other corresponds to the asymmetric C-C stretching modes of the benzenyl of the thiophenol dimer. The potential-dependent two Raman modes is the potential-dependent dimerisation dynamics of thiophenol via the S-S bond. Our experimental findings provide insight into the structural elucidation of adsorbed molecules and molecular surface reaction dynamics.