Surface Plasmon‐Coupled Emission

Abstract

Fluorescence technology, including the optical sensing and microscopic imaging, has been playing important roles in biological research. However it still remains a great challenge to meet the increasing needs of sensitivity and applicability. Surface plasmon-coupled emission (SPCE) is a valid technique that can significantly improve the performance of fluorescence spectroscopy. In SPCE, the excited fluorophores couple with surface plasmons on a continuous thin metal film, which in turn radiate into higher refractive index media with a narrow angular distribution. Attributed to the highly directional emission, the collection efficiency is improved greatly. SPCE is susceptible at interfaces, particularly benefical to interfacial designing for surface analysis; it can extend probing region underneath a surface by combining waveguide mode. This review will summarize the unique features of SPCE that are important in analytical researches, in particular, with a focus on the recent advancements in the strategies for improving the performance of SPCE in bio-applications, especially taking the authors’ works as the examples for illustration. Recent achievements in SPCE suggest that it could provide new technical platforms with widespread potential applications in various areas, such as biochemical sensing, molecular diagnostics and cell biology.