Place & Play SERS: sample collection and preparation-free surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

Abstract

The ability to perform sensitive, real-time, in situ, multiplex chemical analysis is indispensable for diverse applications such as human health monitoring, food safety testing, forensic analysis, environmental sensing, and homeland...

An Ultralow‐Cost, Durable, Flexible Substrate for Ultrabroadband Surface‐Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

“…In our “place & play SERS” application, we adopted a slightly modified approach based on a prior procedure. [ 22 ] First, around 10 μL of the pesticide analyte dissolved in a methanol solution was applied onto a clean fruit surface. After letting the solution evaporate for ≈5 min to eliminate the methanol, we lightly misted the surface with water.…”

“…Such an approach is impractical for real‐world applications. Flexible SERS substrates offer distinct advantages by avoiding the need for complex sample preparation, extending the reach of SERS to diverse fields, and including in situ pesticide detection on fruit surfaces, [ 21,22 ] on‐site aquatic products diagnostics, [ 23 ] and noninvasive monitoring of biomarkers present in biofluids such as uric acid and glucose in human tears. [ 24 ]…”

“…Such an approach is impractical for real-world applications. Flexible SERS substrates offer distinct advantages by avoiding the need for complex sample preparation, extending the reach of SERS to diverse fields, and including in situ pesticide detection on fruit surfaces, [21,22] on-site aquatic products diagnostics, [23] and noninvasive monitoring of biomarkers present in biofluids such as uric acid and glucose in human tears. [24] The advancement in the realm of flexible SERS substrates has been marked by the exploration of a diverse range of materials, including nanowires, [25,26] graphene/graphene oxide, [27,28] paper, [24,29,30] and flexible polymers.…”

“…The inspiration behind this innovative fabrication stemmed from our preceding SERS sensor, which featured gold-coated, biocompatible PVA nanofibers. [22,33] In this work, we discerned the substrate's previously unrecognized broadband optical capacities, enabling the effective harnessing of several excitation laser wavelengths in the visible and near-infrared regions, notably, 488, 532, 633, and 785 nm. For this reason, we refer to this method of covering a broad range of multiple excitable wavelengths from the visible to near-infrared region as ultrabroadband SERS.…”

Deciphering the Potential of Multidimensional Carbon Materials for Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy through Density Functional Theory

“…Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a remarkably sensitive analytical method, delivering substantially higher sensitivity compared with the relatively weak spontaneous Raman scattering. Its superior sensitivity positions SERS as a potent tool in various scientific and technological fields, including trace chemical identification, − biomolecular imaging, , and medical diagnostics. − Traditional SERS substrates typically use noble metal nanomaterials like gold, ,− silver, − and copper nanostructures, leveraging their surface plasmon resonance (SPR) due to their robust electromagnetic properties. However, these conventional noble metal-based SERS substrates face limitations.…”