Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
  • Publication
    Surface enhanced luminescence and Raman scattering from ferroelectrically defined Ag nanopatterned arrays
    Ag nanopatterned arrays prepared using periodically proton exchanged templates have been demonstrated to support surface enhanced luminescence. Fluorescence lifetime imaging reveals that luminescence intensity is greatest on Ag and that the lifetime of the molecular probe is reduced, in line with a surface enhanced luminescence mechanism. Studies establish that the substrate simultaneously supports surface enhanced luminescence and Raman scattering. Spatial dependence along the nanopatterned arrays shows <7% variation in Raman scattering signal intensity, offering high reproducibility for practical applications. Fluorophores emitting near the plasmon absorption maxima are enhanced 4-fold.
      589Scopus© Citations 38
  • Publication
    The Effect of Ag Nanoparticles on Surface-Enhanced Luminescence from Au Nanovoid Arrays
    Studies comparing the effect of adding two different nanoparticle compositions on the plasmonic properties of Au nanovoid arrays were undertaken. Surface-enhanced resonance luminescence and surface-enhanced resonance Raman studies comparing dispersed Ag nanoparticles and Ag nanoparticle aggregates on gold nanovoid arrays were undertaken. These studies showed that using Ag nanoparticle aggregates increased both luminescence and Raman efficiency relative to when dispersed nanoparticles were used; in addition, these studies also showed that adding dispersed Ag nanoparticles supported a more reproducible enhancement in luminescence and Raman across the substrate compared to using Ag nanoparticle aggregates. Finite element analysis simulations indicated that surface plasmon polariton distribution in the sample was affected by the presence of the Ag nanoparticles on the Au nanovoid array.
    Scopus© Citations 24  456
  • Publication
    Application of AAO matrix in aligned gold nanorod array substrates for surface-Enhanced fluorescence and Raman scattering
    In this paper, we probed surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and surface-enhanced fluorescence (SEF) from probe molecule Rhodamine 6G (R6G) on self-standing Au nanorod array substrates made using a combination of anodization and potentiostatic electrodeposition. The initial substrates were embedded within a porous alumina template (AAO). By controlling the thickness of the AAO matrix, SEF and SERS were observed exhibiting an inverse relationship. SERS and SEF showed a non-linear response to the removal of AAO matrix due to an inhomogeneous plasmon activity across the nanorod which was supported by FDTD calculations. We showed that by optimizing the level of AAO thickness, we could obtain either maximized SERS, SEF or simultaneously observe both SERS and SEF together.
    Scopus© Citations 28  575
  • Publication
    Photoreduction of SERS-active metallic nanostructures on chemically-patterned ferroelectric crystals
    Photodeposition of metallic nanostructures onto ferroelectric surfaces is typically based on patterning local surface reactivity via electric field poling. Here, we demonstrate metal deposition onto substrates which have been chemically patterned via proton exchange (i.e., without polarization reversal). The chemical patterning provides the ability to tailor the electrostatic fields near the surface of lithium niobate crystals and these engineered fields are used to fabricate metallic nanostructures. The effect of the proton exchange process on the piezoelectric and electrostatic properties of the surface is characterized using voltage modulated atomic force microscopy techniques, which combined with modeling of the electric fields at the surface of the crystal, reveal that the deposition occurs preferentially along the boundary between ferroelectric and proton exchanged regions. The metallic nanostructures have been further functionalized with a target probe molecule, 4-aminothiophenol, from which surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) signal is detected, demonstrating the suitability of chemically patterned ferroelectrics as SERS-active templates.
    Scopus© Citations 60  662
  • Publication
    Plasmon Enhanced Raman From Ag Nanopatterns Made Using Periodically Poled Lithium Niobate and Periodically Proton Exchanged Template Methods
    We study Ag nanopattern arrays formed using ferroelectric lithography based on two separate approaches, i.e., periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) and periodically proton exchanged (PPE) template methods. We demonstrate that such nanoarrays are plasmon active. Raman spectroscopy was applied to study molecular probe 4-aminothiophenol (4-ABT) absorbed onto a silver nanostructured array. The observed Raman spectra show peaks arising from b2 modes, which occur for plasmon enhanced Raman from 4-ABT in place of a1 modes, which occur in normal Raman scattering. We demonstrate that the PPLN and PPE substrates possess different plasmonic properties with PPE creating a stronger SERS signal relative to PPLN substrates.
    Scopus© Citations 50  736
  • Publication
    Plasmon enhanced fluorescence studies from aligned gold nanorod arrays modified with SiO2 spacer layers
    Here we demonstrate that quasi self-standing Au nanorod arrays prepared with plasma polymerisation deposited SiO2 dielectric spacers support surface enhanced fluorescence (SEF) while maintaining high signal reproducibility. We show that it is possible to find a balance between enhanced radiative and non-radiative decay rates at which the fluorescent intensity is maximized. The SEF signal optimised with a 30 nm spacer layer thickness, showed a 3.5-fold enhancement with a signal variance of <15% thereby keeping the integrity of the nanorod array. We also demonstrate the decreased importance of obtaining resonance conditions when LSPR is positioned within the spectral region of Au interband transitions. Procedures for further increasing the SEF enhancement factor are also discussed.
    Scopus© Citations 32  678