The controlled fabrication of “Tip-On-Tip” TERS probes

What is it about?

Tip-enhanced near-field Raman spectroscopy has exhibited a great ability to detect in situ chemical and structural information on a sample surface with the highest lateral resolution combined with a highsensitivity at the same time. A key challenge in TERS field is the development and improvement of the fabrication of reproducible metal tip geometries with sharper apex. In this study, one novel apertureless “Tip-On-Tip” TERS probe with a special plasmonic nanostructure is designed and prepared

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Why is it important?

These silver nanoneedles possess a very sharp apex with an apex diameter of 15 nm and an apex angle of 20
. The novel TERS probes exhibit enhanced near-field Raman signals compared to an Ag-coated SPM probe, which are attributed to the intense electromagnetic field around the apexes of the Ag nanoneedles and the periodic structure of the Ag nanoneedles.