Flexible microsphere‐coupled surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (McSERS) by dielectric microsphere cavity array with random plasmonic nanoparticles

Abstract

Surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a powerful tool for nondestructive and ultrasensitive optical trace‐detection. However, the sophisticated fabrication processes and performance degradation on flexible substrates block SERS for practical uses. Here, we report a facile flexible microsphere‐coupled SERS (McSERS) substrate composed of a dielectric microsphere cavity array (MCA) and random gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) capping on a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) film (MCA/Au NPs/PDMS) for giant Raman enhancement. The random distribution of Au NPs provides a hydrophilic surface against to the coffee‐ring effect for uniform localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) response. The MCA capped on the Au NPs boosts the Raman intensity via the multiple optical manipulation processes, in which the photonic nanojet (PNJ) confines the excitation intensity near the Au NPs, whispering‐gallery mode (WGM) facilitates the energy transfer from microsphere cavities to Au NP gaps for LSPR boosting, and directional antenna effect converts near‐field Raman signals into far‐field with a small divergence. Therefore, the Raman scattering is dramatically improved with the enhancement factor ( EF) to 10 ⁷ for the limit of detection (LoD) of 4‐nitrobenzenethiol (4‐NBT) molecules down to 0.1 nM, two orders of magnitude higher via MCA coupling. Moreover, the flexible McSERS substrate exhibits outstanding durability and compatibility as an ultrasensitive Raman test strip, by which the thiram concentration is detectable down to 2.42 ng/cm ² on apple peels. The present work provides a facile strategy to fabricate SERS substrates with high flexibility for optical trace‐detection in real‐world applications.