Surface-enhanced Raman scattering II: concluding remarks

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enables the detection of a large number of different adsorbates at extraordinarily low levels. This plasmonics-based technology has undergone a number of remarkable advances since its discovery over 40 years ago, and has emerged from being an investigative tool confined largely to the research laboratory into a much more usable tool across a broad range of investigative studies, both within the laboratory and beyond. The purpose of this Concluding remarks manuscript is to capture, at least in part, the developments in this area since the first Faraday discussion of SERS over a decade ago. It begins with a brief contextual overview and then moves into describing a few of the many highlights from the meeting. Along the way, we have added a few comments and perspectives as a means to more fully stage where the different areas of research with SERS stand today. An addendum is included that collects a few of the recent perspectives on the original work and activities in this area.