Exploring the generality of ligands for Silica-Encapsulated nanoclusters as SERS labels

Aodi Zhang; Yusai Zhou; Feng Xue; Xudong Peng; Hongyu Chen; Hong Wang

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2022.12.099

Exploring the generality of ligands for Silica-Encapsulated nanoclusters as SERS labels

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2023 Apr:635:43-49. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2022.12.099. Epub 2022 Dec 20.

Authors

Aodi Zhang¹, Yusai Zhou², Feng Xue¹, Xudong Peng¹, Hongyu Chen³, Hong Wang⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Advanced Synthesis, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, Jiangsu, PR China.
² Institute of Advanced Synthesis, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, Jiangsu, PR China; Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China.
³ Institute of Advanced Synthesis, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, Jiangsu, PR China; Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Westlake University, 18 Shilongshan Road, Hangzhou 310024, Zhejiang Province, China; Institute of Natural Sciences, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, 18 Shilongshan Road, Hangzhou 310024, Zhejiang Province, PR China.
⁴ Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, PR China. Electronic address: wanghong82@ustc.edu.cn.

PMID: 36577354
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2022.12.099

Abstract

The surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) reporters are rather limited, and the Raman peaks still overlap in varying degrees, making SERS multiplex coding a critical bottleneck in the exploration of SERS nanotechnology. Herein, we design a general strategy to expand the SERS probe scope to 26 probes of six types, which can be further expanded within a limited range, with stable performance and structure. By constructing (Au-aggregate)@Ag@silica and (Au-aggregate)@silica nanocomposites, we develop optimal enhancement strategies for each Raman molecules. Mixed signal-ligand SERS probes improve the complexity of Raman spectra and expand the coding capacity. By integrating the strategies, SERS inks are produced and applied in anti-counterfeiting. With these improvements, this work breaks the constrains of probe selection, bringing SERS one step closer to the sensor or anti-counterfeiting application.

Keywords: Anti-counterfeiting ink; Nanocomposite; Raman probe molecules; SERS labels.