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A Shape-Engineered Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Optical Fiber Sensor Working from the Visible to the Near-Infrared

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Abstract

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) takes advantage of the giant electromagnetic field enhancement provided by localized surface plasmons in metal nanoparticles to amplify the weak Raman scattering of the molecules. Optical fibers coated with noble metal nanoparticles can therefore be used as SERS-based sensors for remote detection of molecular species. In this article, we report on the development of an optical fiber SERS sensor capable to operate on a range of excitation wavelengths from the visible to the near-infrared. We introduce a quasistatic chemical etching protocol to engineer the tip shape and investigate the effects of the tip shape on the sensor performances.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge financial support from MIUR (PRIN 2008J858Y7), European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-HEALTH-F5-2009-241818-NANOANTENNA, Grant Agreement No. 241818), Programma Operativo Nazionale Ricerca e Competitività 2007–2013, PON01_01322 PANREX.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CNR-Istituto Processi Chimico-Fisici, Viale F. Stagno D’Alcontres 37, 98158, Messina, Italy

    Antonino Foti, Cristiano D’Andrea, Francesco Bonaccorso, Maurizio Lanza, Giuseppe Calogero, Elena Messina, Onofrio Maria Maragò, Barbara Fazio & Pietro Giuseppe Gucciardi

  2. Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0FA, UK

    Francesco Bonaccorso

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  1. Antonino Foti
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  2. Cristiano D’Andrea
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  3. Francesco Bonaccorso
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  4. Maurizio Lanza
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  5. Giuseppe Calogero
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  6. Elena Messina
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  7. Onofrio Maria Maragò
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  8. Barbara Fazio
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  9. Pietro Giuseppe Gucciardi
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Correspondence to Pietro Giuseppe Gucciardi.

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Foti, A., D’Andrea, C., Bonaccorso, F. et al. A Shape-Engineered Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Optical Fiber Sensor Working from the Visible to the Near-Infrared. Plasmonics 8, 13–23 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11468-012-9371-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11468-012-9371-3

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