Premium
Spatially resolved detection of plasmon‐enhanced fluorescence using scanning tunneling microscopy
Author(s) -
Uemura T.,
AkaiKasaya M.,
Saito A.,
Aono M.,
Kuwahara Y.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
surface and interface analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1096-9918
pISSN - 0142-2421
DOI - 10.1002/sia.2839
Subject(s) - fluorescence , scanning tunneling microscope , surface plasmon , indium tin oxide , materials science , plasmon , nanosphere lithography , substrate (aquarium) , surface plasmon resonance , fluorescence microscope , localized surface plasmon , analytical chemistry (journal) , optoelectronics , chemistry , photochemistry , nanotechnology , optics , nanoparticle , thin film , medicine , oceanography , physics , alternative medicine , pathology , chromatography , fabrication , geology
We have measured a nanoscale fluorescence image of copper phthalocyanine (CuPc)/Au nanostructures on an indium tin oxide (ITO) substrate using a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). The quantum efficiency (QE) of the intrinsic fluorescence of CuPc is very low; however, the plasmon enhancement effect on an Au surface increases fluorescence efficiency. To obtain the nanoscale fluorescence image, in this study, we used up‐conversion fluorescence through a triplet‐triplet annihilation (TTA) process. Tunnel electrons induced fluorescence and tip‐induced plasmon (TIP) emission simultaneously; however, the up‐conversion fluorescence from CuPc could be clearly separated from TIP emission by spectroscopic filtering. The TIP showed different properties between the ITO substrate and the Au surface, and the CuPc fluorescence was enhanced only on the TIP of Au nanostructures. This study would lead to the application of a new fluorescence imaging method based on plasmon‐assisted STM‐induced light emission (STM‐LE). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.