title: Composite blends of gold nanorods and poly(t-butylacrylate) beads as new substrates for SERS.
abstract: Polymer based composites containing metal nanoparticles are shown to provide new substrates for SERS detection and simultaneously enable the development of new tools for molecular sensing. A very important aspect on the use of hybrid materials relates to the observation of synergistic effects that result from the use of distinct components such as a polymer and metal nanoparticles. We report here the preparation of new SERS substrates made from blends of colloidal Au (nanospheres and nanorods) and PtBA (poly(t-butylacrylate)). The observed SERS enhancement depends on the characteristics of the obtained hybrid material. When compared to the starting Au colloids, the Au/PtBA nanocomposites led to SERS spectra with more intense bands, using 2,2'-dithiodipyridine as molecular probe. The origin of the stronger Raman signal in this case, is possibly due to a combination of events related to the nanocomposite characteristics, including the formation of Au assemblies at the polymer surface due to particle clustering, and the absorption increase in a spectral region closer to the laser excitation wavelength. The strategy described here is a low-cost process with potential for the up-scale fabrication of SERS substrates, namely by using other types of nanocomposites.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and CICECO, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fateixa
authors.forename: Paula C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Pinheiro
authors.forename: Helena I S
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Nogueira
authors.forename: Tito
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Trindade
mesh_terms: D015082:2,2'-Dipyridyl / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry; D000179:Acrylates / Q000737:chemistry*; D003102:Colloids / Q000737:chemistry; D004220:Disulfides / Q000737:chemistry; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D043942:Nanotubes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D012996:Solutions; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman
chemical_list: D000179:Acrylates; D003102:Colloids; D004220:Disulfides; D011108:Polymers; D012996:Solutions; C585878:poly(t-butylacrylate); C001105:2,2'-dipyridyl disulfide; D015082:2,2'-Dipyridyl; D006046:Gold
keywords: Gold nanorods; Nanocomposites; Poly(t-butylacrylate); SERS