title: Synthesis and characterization of gold nanoparticles coated with ultrathin and chemically inert dielectric shells for SHINERS applications.
abstract: We very recently reported a new spectroscopic application for expanding the versatility of surface Raman called "shell-isolated nanoparticle-enhanced Raman spectroscopy" or "SHINERS". The most important and most difficult part of the SHINERS experiment is the effective transfer of the strong electromagnetic field from a gold core through the isolating silica or alumina shell to the probed surface. For this it is essential that the chemically inert dielectric shell be ultrathin (2-5 nm) yet pinhole-free. Herein we describe experimental and theoretical aspects of our SHINERS method in more detail. We provide a protocol for the synthesis and characterization of optimized shell-isolated nanoparticles (SHINs), and we examine the advantages of SHINERS nanoparticles over bare gold nanoparticles. We also present high-quality Raman spectra obtained from gold and platinum single-crystal surfaces in an electrochemical environment by our SHINERS technique. SHINERS is a simple and cost-effective approach that expands the flexibility of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) for an unprecedented diversity of applications in materials and surface sciences.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, China.
authors.forename: Jian-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Song-Bo
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jason R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Anema
authors.forename: Zhi-Lin
authors.initials: ZL
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yi-Fan
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.forename: Yuan-Fei
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Xiao-Shun
authors.initials: XS
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: De-Yin
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.forename: Zhong-Lin
authors.initials: ZL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Zhong-Qun
authors.initials: ZQ
authors.lastname: Tian