Recent Development and Applications of Stretchable SERS Substrates

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a cutting-edge technique for highly sensitive analysis of chemicals and molecules. Traditional SERS-active nanostructures are constructed on rigid substrates where the nanogaps providing hot-spots of Raman signals are fixed, and sample loading is unsatisfactory due to the unconformable attachment of substrates on irregular sample surfaces. A flexible SERS substrate enables conformable sample loading and, thus, highly sensitive Raman detection but still with limited detection capabilities. Stretchable SERS substrates with flexible sample loading structures and controllable hot-spot size provide a new strategy for improving the sample loading efficiency and SERS detection sensitivity. This review summarizes and discusses recent development and applications of the newly conceptual stretchable SERS substrates. A roadmap of the development of SERS substrates is reviewed, and fabrication techniques of stretchable SERS substrates are summarized, followed by an exhibition of the applications of these stretchable SERS substrates. Finally, challenges and perspectives of the stretchable SERS substrates are presented. This review provides an overview of the development of SERS substrates and sheds light on the design, fabrication, and application of stretchable SERS systems.