Rationally designed multifunctional plasmonic nanostructures for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy: a review

Rep Prog Phys. 2014 Nov;77(11):116502. doi: 10.1088/0034-4885/77/11/116502. Epub 2014 Nov 6.

Abstract

Rationally designed multifunctional plasmonic nanostructures efficiently integrate two or more functionalities into a single entity, for example, with both plasmonic and catalytic activity. This review article is focused on their synthesis and use in surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) as a molecular spectroscopic technique with high sensitivity, fingerprint specificity, and surface selectivity. After a short tutorial on the fundamentals of Raman scattering and SERS in particular, applications ranging from chemistry (heterogeneous catalysis) to biology and medicine (diagnostics/imaging, therapy) are summarized.