Nanowires Enabling Signal-Enhanced Nanoscale Raman Spectroscopy

in: Small (2008)
Becker, Michael; Sivakov, Vladimir; Goesele, Ulrich; Andrä, Gudrun; Hoffmann, S.; Michler, Johann; Christiansen, Silke; Stelzner, Thomas; Reich, Hans J.
Silicon nanowires grown by the vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) mechanism catalyzed by gold show gold caps (droplets) approximately 20–500 nm in diameter with a half spherical towards almost spherical shape. These gold droplets are well suited to exploit the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect and could be used for tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS). The gold droplet of a nanowire attached to an atomic force microscopy (AFM) tip could locally enhance the Raman signal and increase the spatial resolution. Used as a SERS template, an ensemble of self-organizing nanowires grown bottom up on a silicon substrate could allow highly sensitive signal-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of materials that show a characteristic Raman signature. A combination of a nanowire-based TERS probe and a nanowire-based SERS substrate promises optimized signal enhancement so that the detection of highly dilute species, even single molecules or single bacteria or DNA strands, and other soft matter is within reach. Potential applications of this novel nanowire-based SERS and TERS solution lie in the fields of biomedical and life sciences, as well as security and solid-state research such as silicon technology

Third party cookies & scripts

This site uses cookies. For optimal performance, smooth social media and promotional use, it is recommended that you agree to third party cookies and scripts. This may involve sharing information about your use of the third-party social media, advertising and analytics website.
For more information, see privacy policy and imprint.
Which cookies & scripts and the associated processing of your personal data do you agree with?

You can change your preferences anytime by visiting privacy policy.