Self‐Support Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering Substrates with the Function of Enriching Analytes

Abstract

Ultrasensitive detection of surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) signals is in high demand in the fields of physical, chemical, biological medicine, and environmental monitoring. Plasmonic noble metal nanocrystals localize electromagnetic field on their surfaces, which can lead to a great increase of Raman intensity of the adsorbed molecules. Herein, self‐supporting Ag nanowire networks with abundance of multiscale gaps as well as with function of enriching analytes are proposed to be simply synthesized to act as an excellent substrate for surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy ultrasensitive detection. By effectively combining the hotspots effect of nanogaps and the enriching effect of gaps, the Raman signal is significantly enhanced by a factor of 6 × 105 and the detection limit of Rhodamine 6G (R6G) can reach 1 × 10−7m. Moreover, The R6G molecules can be adsorbed to these “hot spots,” leading to greatly enhanced Raman signals. This study introduces an effective SERS substrate to achieve ultrasensitive Raman detection in the fields of physical, chemical, biological medicine, and environmental monitoring.