The past decade has seen an enormous increase in the number and breadth of imaging techniques developed for analysis in many industries, including pharmaceuticals, food, and especially biomedicine. Rather than accept single-dimensional forms of information, users now demand multidimensional assessment of samples. High specificity and the need for little or no sample preparation make Raman imaging a highly attractive analytical technique and provide motivation for continuing advances in its supporting technology and utilization. This review discusses the current tools employed in Raman imaging, the recent advances, and the major applications in this ever-growing analytical field.

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We report studies on the modifications induced by the evaporation of copper overlayers on a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of the oligo(phenylene-ethynyl) dithiol, 1-thio-4-[4'-[(4'-thio)phenylethynyl]-1'-ethynyl]-benzene (TTPEB). These SAMs were characterized after deposition from a tetrahydrofuran solution on polycrystalline gold substrates and after copper evaporation and its subsequent removal by nitric acid. Monolayers were studied via cyclic voltammetry (CV), UV-vis multiwavelength ellipsometry, external reflectance infrared (IR) spectroscopy, and ion scattering spectroscopy (ISS). The results obtained indicate that TTPEB SAMs display the same packing characteristics before and after copper evaporation and removal. However, as shown by IR spectroscopy, the monolayers undergo a reorganization process that involves an increase in tilt angle accompanied by rotation of aromatic rings that results in a decrease in the average molecular twist angle. ISS data suggest that copper diffuses through the monolayer after copper evaporation, a result that is significant for applications of this molecule in molecular electronic devices.