Capillary-force-assisted self-assembly of gold nanoparticles into highly ordered plasmonic thin films for ultrasensitive SERS

Abstract

In this study, a capillary device based on the surface plasmon-enhanced Raman scattering effect was prepared by a simple and easy method. First, the capillary was treated with APTES solution. Due to the electrostatic effect, gold nanoparticles could be easily and tightly assembled in the capillary inner wall. On this basis, the effects of changing the concentration of APTES, the concentration of colloids and the soaking time of the capillary in the colloids on the assembly of gold nanoparticles on the inner wall of the capillary were studied, and the SERS enhancement effect under different conditions was analyzed, and the optimal solution was successfully found. At the same time, the reason why the capillary substrate shows better SERS performance than the traditional planar substrate is deeply discussed. Since the nanoparticles can be attached to the upper and lower surfaces of the inner wall of the capillary, the utilization rate of nanoparticles and laser is improved, thereby achieving higher enhancement. For the detection of the probe molecule rhodamine 6G, it was proved that the substrate has good uniformity and the lowest detection limit can reach 10⁻¹⁰ M. Finally, the real-life pesticide thiram and the food additive aspartame were tested, and the detection limits could reach 10⁻⁶ M and 0.25 g L⁻¹. It is confirmed that the prepared capillary shows excellent SERS performance and can be used for rapid detection in various fields.