A Mini-review on Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering and Engineering of SERS-Active Platforms by Laser Ablation in Liquids
摘要
The poor scattering cross-section of the Raman process is eliminated by employing the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of analyte molecules at ultra-low concentrations adsorbed on the plasmonic (silver, gold, copper, platinum, etc.) metal nanoparticles (NPs)/nanostructures (NSs). Excitation of the surface plasmons (SPs) on the surface of the plasmonic nanomaterials mediates the process of SERS. The SERS technique detect the molecules at ultra-low concentrations; even single molecular detection is also possible with the SERS technique. One has to synthesize/fabricate plasmonic nanomaterials of different shapes and sizes for an efficient detection of analytes. To produce efficient SERS-active platforms, diverse methods of synthesis/fabrication compete with other methods with their advantage/disadvantages. Among the many methods laser ablation in liquids (LAL) of metal/semiconductor targets submerged in the liquid medium is a well-known green method that does not require lengthy protocols and hazardous chemicals. LAL supports generating the SERS-active plasmonic platforms to detect even a single molecule. LAL is the only technique simultaneously produces NSs as well as NPs. This review gives an insight into SERS, its essential requirements via LAL, and the advantages of LAL compared to the existing methodologies of nanomaterial synthesis in the perspective of SERS. The review concludes with the limitations and the future scope of LAL in meeting the requirements of SERS.