Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) was used to investigate plasmonic coupling between gold nanoparticle (AuNP) and a gold film. Nitrobenzenethiol (NBT) modified AuNP immobilized with antibody-antigen interactions were compared to AuNP immobilized via 11-amino-1-undecanethoil hydrochloride (AUT) and aminoethanethiol (AET). It is hypothesized that lengthier spaces between AuNP and underlying film will correlate to reduced intensities compared to shorter gap distances. As theorized, the SERS signal intensities increased with decreasing gap distance i.e. three proteins, two proteins, AUT and AET. Interestingly, the SERS intensities of the protein immobilized AuNP varied based on samples' hydrated states. Greater SERS signal was collected for dry samples than hydrated samples. This effect was attributed to change in protein size with change in hydration. This will aid in identifying and solving potential limitations in bio-assay development.

Testing of surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy on plasmonic coupled gold nanoparticles

248th National Meeting (2014)

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