Optical devices for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsDavid A. Fattal, Zhiyong Li, Qiangfei Xia
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An optical device for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy includes a substrate, and at least one antenna established thereon. The at least one antenna including at least two segments, where each segment is formed of a metal having a predetermined volume and a predetermined contact angle with respect to the substrate. A gap is located between the two segments. The gap has a controllable size such that the at least one antenna resonates at a predetermined frequency that corresponds with the gap.
Claims16
An optical device for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy, comprising:
- a substrate;
- and
- at least one antenna established on the substrate, the at least one antenna including:
- at least two segments, each segment formed of a metal having a predetermined volume and a predetermined contact angle with respect to the substrate;
- and
- a gap located between the two segments, the gap having a controllable size such that the at least one antenna resonates at a predetermined frequency that corresponds with the gap, the gap size being controllable via heating until the at least two segments and the substrate are in a state of equilibrium.
A method for making an optical device for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy, comprising:
- selecting a metal having a predetermined contact angle with respect to a substrate;
- establishing the metal on the substrate to form at least two segments having a gap therebetween, each of the at least two segments having an initial geometry and a predetermined volume, and the gap having an initial size;
- and heating the at least two segments, thereby i) altering the initial geometry of each of the at least two segments to achieve a final geometry while maintaining the predetermined volume of each of the at least two segments, and ii) altering the initial size of the gap to achieve a final size that is different than the initial size, the gap size being controllable via heating until the at least two segments and the substrate are in a state of equilibrium.
An optical system for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy, comprising:
- an optical device, including:
- a substrate;
- and
- at least one antenna established on the substrate, the at least one antenna including:
- at least two segments, each segment formed of a metal having a predetermined volume and a predetermined contact angle with respect to the substrate;
- and
- a gap located between the at least two segments, the gap having a controllable size such that the at least one antenna resonates at a predetermined frequency that corresponds with the gap, the qap size being dynamically controllable via heating until the at least two segments and the substrate are in an equilibrium state;
- a light source operatively configured to direct light toward the gap;
- and
- a detector operatively positioned to detect an enhanced Raman signal from a material of interest positioned at a region proximate to the gap.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.