Fabrication of fractal structured soot templated titania-silver nano-surfaces for photocatalysis and SERS sensing

Surface functionalized 3D printed metal structures as next generation recyclable SERS substrates

“…The method used for chemical vapor deposition of TiO 2 on soot functionalised metal substrates was reported previously. 18 Titanium isopropoxide was used as the precursor for titanium dioxide and its hydrolysis was performed in the vapor phase in a tubular furnace at elevated temperatures under gas flow which led to deposition of TiO 2 on the soot-functionalised metallic substrates. Fig.…”

“…Such substrates can be cleaned by irradiating with UV light where the photocatalytic sites oxidise the organic analyte molecules into carbon dioxide and water which restores the SERS activity of substrates for further use. 18,27 Recyclable SERS substrates are promising candidates when resources are limited since these substrates can offer simple, mild, low-cost and rapid analysis with efficient reusability compared to external physical and chemical treatments. Scheme 1 depicts the concept of a multi-functional recyclable SERS substrate which consists of plasmonic metal and photocatalytic semiconductor nanoparticles.…”

“…Previous studies from our group have shown that soot deposited in this manner using candle wax and natural oil precursors consist of an intricate 3D porous network of carbon which has a fractal structure. 18 The method is applicable to all types of substrates including 3D, porous and flexible substrates and the soot layer adheres to the underlying structures strongly enough to allow further processing. An XPS study of the different carbon nanostructures deposited using this method on silicon, Inconel, and titanium alloy substrates with eucalyptus oil as the hydrocarbon precursor showed large differences in the type of deposited carbon as shown in Fig.…”

“…Thin film substrates are usually fabricated using lithography methods and can result in good repeatability and high enhancement factors when adequately prepared. 11,13,[17][18][19][20] However, fabrication using lithography methods is expensive which may hamper their economic viability in large-scale prototyping. Flexible SERS substrates contain plasmonic nanoparticles which are immobilised on the surface of robust polymeric materials.…”

Solid-State Dewetting of Thin Silver Films into Spherical Nanoparticles under High-Current Pulsed Ion Beam Irradiation

“…Noble metal nanoparticles (NPs) and thin films have been proven as prominent materials for manipulation of light due to their strong localized surface plasmon resonance and surface plasmon polariton properties. , Notably, silver (Ag) NPs and films, e.g., nanostructures, show the broad spectra of applications: antibacterial, , antimicrobial, gas sensing, , surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) sensing, ,− etc. in addition to plasmonic utilization. , Practical employment of Ag NPs in those reports strongly depends on shape, size, crystallinity, etc. , …”