Abstract
The near-infrared emissions of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) falls within the optical transparency window of biological tissue, allowing deep-tissue, in vivo and in vitro imaging. However, the relatively low photoluminescence quantum yield of SWCNTs, which typically lies in the range of 0.1 - 1.5%, limits the penetration depth and sensitivity of these fluorophores when used as imaging agents and optical sensors. In the present work, we enhance the fluorescence emission of SWCNTs up to 10-fold by employing different localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) nanostructures. We observe a chirality-dependent enhancement that varies with the nanostructure geometry and material. The proposed mechanism is based on changes in the charge density following nanoparticle conjugation with the SWCNT. In agreement with this mechanism, the enhancement and quenching effects show a strong correlation with the distance between the SWCNTs and the nanostructures. Finally, we demonstrate the applicability of this technology in a single-molecule imaging SWCNT application.
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