Aluminum nanoparticle films with an enhanced hot-spot intensity for high-efficiency SERS

Li, Zhen; Li, Chonghui; Yu, Jing; Li, Zhaoxiang; Zhao, Xiaofei; Liu, Aihua; Jiang, Shouzhen; Yang, Cheng; Zhang, Chao; Man, Baoyuan

doi:10.1364/oe.389886

Cited by 30 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…[158] The SERS enhancement factor of Al tends to be in the 10 3 to 10 6 range, which is comparable to that of Ag in the near UV (300 to 400 nm), while vastly superior in the mid-UV range (200 to 300 nm). [159,160] The native oxide of Al is also particularly suitable for label-free measurement of DNA wherein the preferential binding of the phosphate backbone of DNA on aluminum oxide improves the robustness of the SERS measurement. [161] Enhancement of emission such as in fluorescence is similarly achievable with Al with the aforementioned caveat of generally lower enhancement for SEF compared to SERS.…”

Section: Perspective On New Materials For Broader Wavelength Rangementioning

confidence: 99%

Rainbows at the End of Subwavelength Discontinuities: Plasmonic Light Trapping for Sensing Applications

Farid

Dixon

Shayegannia

et al. 2021

Advanced Optical Materials

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Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) which exist at the metal-dielectric interface are guided by the coupling of electromagnetic waves to oscillations in the electron gas plasma created at metal surfaces. Plasmonics, a subset of the field of nanophotonics pertaining to all things beyond the diffraction limit, has flourished and evolved significantly over the past decade offering practical utility to a variety of applications. [1] Notwithstanding the ohmic loss in metals and commensurate limited propagation lengths of SPPs, the ability to effectively concentrate light in nanoscale volumes and generate extremely high electric field intensities at discontinuities or subwavelength patterned surfaces offers unique opportunities to enhance lightmatter interactions for a diverse range of functionalities. [2] Trapping broadband electromagnetic radiation over a range of deep subwavelength guided modes in a given structure provides opportunities for light-matter interactions at the nanoscale. Use of materials-commonly metals-that exhibit negative dielectric permittivity (ε < 0) at optical frequencies provide an optimum solution for light localization. Nanometallic light concentrators, in contrast to their dielectric counterparts, can squeeze and localize light into subwavelength volumes with greater control and higher efficiency. [3] Such plasmonic light concentration can be achieved by either resonant or non-resonant structures. In resonant structures, SPPs are created by time-varying electric fields that exert a force on the negatively charged electron gas inside a metal. These oscillations are resonantly driven leading to a strong charge displacement at specific optical frequencies and concentration of the light field within the structures. [4] For non-resonant light concentration effects, Schuller et al. demonstrated subwavelength light localization by introducing a feed gap in the metal structure for retardation-based resonators. The gap builds up opposite charges across it whereby SPPs encounter a longitudinal electric field component causing strong sub-wavelength light localization. [2] The focus of this article is plasmonic devices that enable rainbow light trapping, a specific modality of nanoscale field enhancement in which trapped light is spatially separated This article presents recent advances in plasmonic multiwavelength rainbow light trapping, a field that has evolved over the last decade and today is an active area of research interest encompassing a manifold of potential applications which include optical biosensing, photodetection, spectroscopy, and medicine. Conventional plasmonic devices are designed and optimized to enhance optical performance at single wavelengths, and as such are not suitable for applications that require electromagnetic field localization at multiple frequencies or broad frequency ranges of interest. To overcome these limitations, the ability to slow and trap light at multiple wavelengths and at different spatial locations has attracted significant scientific attention and opened up n...

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Section: Perspective On New Materials For Broader Wavelength Rangementioning

confidence: 99%

Rainbows at the End of Subwavelength Discontinuities: Plasmonic Light Trapping for Sensing Applications

Farid

Dixon

Shayegannia

et al. 2021

Advanced Optical Materials

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“…Generally, as an appropriate material that can effectively support the resonance of high intensity surface plasmons in the UV region, Al − has greatly attracted researchers’ interest. For instance, Löffler et al have fabricated Al nanoparticle arrays by extreme ultraviolet lithography, which yields large-area, high-throughput UV-SERS substrates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Light-Trapped Nanocavities for Ultraviolet Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering

et al. 2021

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The fabrication of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates with large areas, high activities, desirable uniformities, and aggregated hot spots evenly distributed in the UV (ultraviolet) region has been regarded as a formidable task. In the present work, by means of elaborate structure designs and material selections, we have fabricated periodic light-trapped nanocavities that have overcome the abovementioned difficulties. Specifically, a great amount of electromagnetic energy has been localized in nanocavities due to repeated reflections of the trapped incident light, thus re-amplifying abundant hot spots of the aluminum film. At an excitation wavelength of 325 nm, the acquisition of ultrahigh SERS enhancement factors (≳106) has been successfully achieved, and signal intensities are uniformly distributed after repeated measurements. In the originally weak UV region, our nanostructure design and its associated mechanism may provide a guide for future SERS-related research.

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“…As revealed from the mentioned result, the topmost Al 2 O 3 film was smooth and could act as an effective platform for making Au NPs distribute uniformly on the top of the substrate. Meanwhile, the obtained smooth surface prevented the losses of the SPP from being scattered and exerted a more significant effect in supporting plasmonic resonance coupling [19,31]. Moreover, it was simulated with COMSOL to verify that the composite structure exhibited a great coupling.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A BPP is generated by the interaction of SPPs, enabling it to be more effectively coupled with LSPR than an SPP. Afterwards, Zhen Li et al developed a substrate with an Al nanoparticle−film system, contributing to the generation of BPPs in the ultraviolet region [19]. However, the material properties are subject to several limitations, and the gaps between the dispersed metal particles in this structure are extremely large.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Composite Structure Based on Gold-Nanoparticle Layer and HMM for Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Analysis

et al. 2021

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Hyperbolic metamaterials (HMMs), supporting surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), and highly confined bulk plasmon polaritons (BPPs) possess promising potential for application as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates. In the present study, a composite SERS substrate based on a multilayer HMM and gold-nanoparticle (Au-NP) layer was fabricated. A strong electromagnetic field was generated at the nanogaps of the Au NPs under the coupling between localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) and a BPP. Additionally, a simulation of the composite structure was assessed using COMSOL; the results complied with those achieved through experiments: the SERS performance was enhanced, while the enhancing rate was downregulated, with the extension of the HMM periods. Furthermore, this structure exhibited high detection performance. During the experiments, rhodamine 6G (R6G) and malachite green (MG) acted as the probe molecules, and the limits of detection of the SERS substrate reached 10−10 and 10−8 M for R6G and MG, respectively. Moreover, the composite structure demonstrated prominent reproducibility and stability. The mentioned promising results reveal that the composite structure could have extensive applications, such as in biosensors and food safety inspection.

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Aluminum nanoparticle films with an enhanced hot-spot intensity for high-efficiency SERS

Cited by 30 publications

References 37 publications

Rainbows at the End of Subwavelength Discontinuities: Plasmonic Light Trapping for Sensing Applications

Rainbows at the End of Subwavelength Discontinuities: Plasmonic Light Trapping for Sensing Applications

Light-Trapped Nanocavities for Ultraviolet Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering

Composite Structure Based on Gold-Nanoparticle Layer and HMM for Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Analysis

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