Evaluation of a Laser Reduced Graphene Electrode Modified with Electrodeposited Silver Nanoparticles for SERS Detection

Abstract

The manufacturing of nanostructured surfaces for Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) usually involves highly expensive techniques to achieve good performance. For this reason, this work proposes the preparation of a SERS substrate employing the electrochemical deposition of silver nanoparticles (AgNps) over a laser reduced graphene oxide electrode (LRGO). The material was obtained using laser irradiation of graphene oxide to restore the conductivity of the material and subsequently modified with silver nanoparticles. The material characterization corroborated the reduction of GO and the formation of AgNps with an average diameter of 103 nm. Finally, the LRGO-AgNps substrate was evaluated to detect the model analyte rhodamine 6G, achieving concentrations down to a 1x10-9 M. These results showed the developed material is suitable for application as a SERS substrate with the advantage of having been obtained through a low-cost and easy-to-implement method.