Molded plasmonic crystals for detecting and spatially imaging surface bound species by surface-enhanced Raman scattering

This report introduces a type of plasmonic crystal that consists of metal coated nanostructures of relief molded on a polymer film as a substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). Such crystals exhibit SERS enhancement factors of ∼105, over large areas and with sufficiently high levels of uniformity for precise two-dimensional Raman mapping of surface bound monolayers. The ease of fabrication together with the high sensitivities and spatial resolution that can be achieved suggests an attractive route to SERS substrates for portable chemical warfare agent detection, environmental monitors, noninvasive imaging of biomolecules, and other applications.