Ultra-Sensitive Abscisic Acid Detection Using Gold and 4-Mercaptopyridine Perovskite-Engineered Robust Nanofibers...

This study explores the development and application of gold and 4-mercaptopyridine (MPY) perovskite-engineered robust nanofibers (GLAMPER-NFs) for the ultrasensitive detection of Abscisic acid (ABA) under Raman spectroscopy, a crucial plant hormone. The GLAMPER-NFs composite material, consisting of MAPbCl₃ nanofibers integrated with MPY-coated gold nanostructures, demonstrates exceptional performance in surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-based sensing. The study elucidates the material structure and properties through comprehensive characterization using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV-vis spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared, and Raman spectroscopy. The SEM analysis reveals uniform nanofibers with diameter of 107.8 ± 3.06 nm, while spectroscopic studies confirm the successful synthesis and integration of the composite components. The SERS-based detection of ABA showcases remarkable sensitivity, with a linear detection range (R² = 0.9957) spanning 7 orders of magnitude (10^-14-10^-7 M) and presented a limit of detection of 10^-11 and enhancement factor of 1.08 × 10⁷. This surpasses the performance of existing sensing platforms, demonstrating clear spectral responses even at femtomolar concentrations. The synergistic effects of the perovskite structure, plasmonic gold nanoparticles, and MPY linking molecules contributed exceptional sensing capabilities to the GLAMPER-NFs material. Fluorescence studies further corroborate the sensitivity and provide insights into the photophysical interactions between ABA and the composite material. This research advances the understanding of perovskite-based hybrid materials and presents a promising GLAMPER-NFs as SERS substrate for ultrasensitive plant hormone detection, with potential applications in agricultural monitoring and plant science research.