Plasmonic Molybdenum Dioxide Ultrathin Nanowire Bundles for Highly Sensitive, Stable, and Reproducible Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Abstract

In surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) detection, it is important to improve the sensitivity, stability, and reproducibility of semiconductor surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates. Here, a simple chemical method was used to synthesize molybdenum dioxide ultrathin nanowire bundles. The ultrathin nanowire bundles of molybdenum dioxide demonstrate distinct and robust surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effects within the visible light range. As a low-cost SERS substrate, the plasmonic molybdenum dioxide nanowire beams exhibit a Raman enhancement factor of 2.9 × 107 and a minimum detection limit of 1.0 × 10–11 mol L–1 for Rhodamine 6G. In addition, these SERS substrates based on molybdenum dioxide ultrathin nanowires exhibit good chemical stability and can resist corrosion by strong acids and bases over time. The molybdenum dioxide ultrathin nanowire bundles have a high potential to become an ideal metal-oxide-based SERS substrate material.