Au nanorod arrays tailored for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

We have demonstrated surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) on arrays of Au nanorods aligned in line by a dynamic oblique deposition technique. For light polarized along the major axes of the nanorods, the plasma resonance of the Au nanorods has been tuned to a wavelength suitable for Raman spectroscopy. Raman scattering on the discrete nanorods is significantly enhanced compared with that on semicontinuous Au films. Since the preparation process is physically bottom-up, it is robust in its selection of the materials and is useful for providing SERS sensors at low cost.