Porous gold nanofibers of different diameters from 43 to 219 nm were fabricated using electrochemical deposition techniques. Gold-silver alloy were electrochemically deposited in the form of nanofibers within the porous alumina templates of various diameters and only a silver phase was chemically removed using nitric acid. Field-emission scanning electron microscope images of the resulting nanofibers show a high-quality nanoporous network with homogeneous pores. A notable surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has been observed for all porous gold nanofibers of which scattering efficiencies are distinctly higher than that of the smooth solid gold nanofibers without porosity. As the diameter of porous gold nanofibers decreases, the observed SERS efficiency gradually increases. Controlled fabrication of lateral width of gold nanofibers reveals promising application for high efficient and stable molecular sensing platforms.
Porous gold nanofibers are fabricated through templated electrochemical routes in porous alumina membranes. Gold-silver alloy is electrochemically deposited in the nanocylinders of the porous alumina templates and then the silver phase is selectively dealloyed. The resulting nanofibers present a nanoporous network with a pore dimension of approximately 10 nm and notable surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) efficiencies which are at least seven times higher than from the smooth solid gold nanofibers without porosity. The relative SERS enhancement on porous gold is directly proved by imaging with a Raman microscope for conjugated porous gold/solid gold single nanorods.
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