Plasmonics, the phenomena resulting from light interactions with nanoscale structures, is an active field for a wide variety of applications. By varying the plasmonic material, size, and geometry, the nanostructures can be tuned to interact with various wavelengths of light. The noble metals gold and silver are commonly used but can be costly to fabricate. Aluminum is a cost-effective alternative to the noble metals. However, aluminum's readily forming native oxide layer does present a challenge as it can complicate fabrication but can act as a protection for the structures. Here we fabricate aluminum nanocrescents using an inexpensive, scalable, and parallel technique to investigate their utility as substrates for surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy. We show that aluminum is an affordable alternative to gold and silver and performs at the same level as gold and silver at IR wavelengths, a region that aluminum is not typically used in, and investigate the differences in line shapes of alkyl stretches between aluminum and gold substrates. Aluminum also shows great promise in other applications due to its high tunability such as; refractive index sensing for biological molecules, photocatalysis, and photovoltaics.

Fabrication and application of aluminum nanocrescents for surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy

2019 Spring National Meeting

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