Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 18, 2026
Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Detection of Biomolecules Using EBL Fabricated Nanostructured Substrates
Published on: March 20, 2015
Fan-shaped gold nanoantennas above reflective substrates for surface-enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA)
Lisa V Brown1, Xiao Yang, Ke Zhao
1Department of Chemistry, ‡Department of Physics and Astronomy, §Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and ⊥Laboratory for Nanophotonics, Rice University , 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005, United States.
Abstract:
Here, we report a new nanoantenna for surface-enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA) detection, consisting of a fan-shaped Au structure positioned at a well-specified distance above a reflective plane with an intervening silica spacer layer. We examine how to optimize both the antenna dimensions and the spacer layer for optimal SEIRA enhancement of the C-H stretching mode. This tunable 3D geometry yields a theoretical SEIRA enhancement factor of 10(5), corresponding to the experimental detection of 20-200 zeptomoles of octadecanethiol, using a standard commercial FTIR spectrometer. Experimental studies illustrate the sensitivity of the observed SEIRA signal to the gap dimensions. The optimized antenna structure exhibits an order of magnitude greater SEIRA sensitivity than previous record-setting designs.
