Open AccessOne-step fabrication of fiber optic SERS sensors via spark ablation
Author(s) -
Attila Kohut,
Viktória Horváth,
Zsuzsanna Pápa,
Balázs Vajda,
Judit Kopniczky,
Gábor Galbács,
Zsolt Geretovszky
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
nanotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.926
H-Index - 203
eISSN - 1361-6528
pISSN - 0957-4484
DOI - 10.1088/1361-6528/ac0c41
Subject(s) - materials science , fiber , raman scattering , fabrication , raman spectroscopy , signal (programming language) , nanoparticle , spark (programming language) , nanotechnology , fiber optic sensor , nanostructure , optoelectronics , optics , composite material , medicine , physics , alternative medicine , pathology , computer science , programming language
Spark ablation, a versatile, gas-phase physical nanoparticle synthesis method was employed to fabricate fiber-optic surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensors in a simple single-step process. We demonstrate that spark-generated silver nanoparticles can be simply deposited onto a fiber tip by means of a modified low-pressure inertial impactor, thus providing significant surface enhancement for fiber-based Raman measurements. The surface morphology of the produced sensors was characterized along with the estimation of the enhancement factor and the inter- and intra-experimental variation of the measured Raman spectrum as well as the investigation of the concentration dependence of the SERS signal. The electric field enhancement over the deposited silver nanostructure was simulated in order to facilitate the better understanding of the performance of the fabricated SERS sensors. A potential application in the continuous monitoring of a target molecule was demonstrated on a simple model system.