A Plasmonic Mass Spectrometry Approach for Detection of Small Nutrients and Toxins

Nutriology relies on advanced analytical tools to study the molecular compositions of food and provide key information on sample quality/safety. Small nutrients detection is challenging due to the high diversity and broad dynamic range of molecules in food samples, and a further issue is to track low abundance toxins. Herein, we developed a novel plasmonic matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry(MALDI MS)approach to detect small nutrients and toxins in complex biological emulsion samples. Silver nanoshells(SiO_2@-Ag) with optimized structures were used as matrices andachieved direct analysis of ~ 6 n L of human breast milk without any enrichment or separation. We performed identification and quantitation of small nutrients and toxins with limit-of-detection down to 0.4 pmol(for melamine) and reaction time shortened to minutes, which is superior to the conventional biochemical method currently in use. The developed approach contributes to the near-future application of MALDI MS in a broad field and personalized design of plasmonic materials for real-case bio-analysis.

Heavily doped silicon:A potential replacement of conventional plasmonic metals

The plasmonic property of heavily doped p-type silicon is studied here.Although most of the plasmonic devices use metal-insulator-metal(MIM)waveguide in order to support the propagation of surface plasmon polaritons(SPPs),metals that possess a number of challenges in loss management,polarization response,nanofabrication etc.On the other hand,heavily doped p-type silicon shows similar plasmonic properties like metals and also enables us to overcome the challenges possessed by metals.For numerical simulation,heavily doped p-silicon is mathematically modeled and the theoretically obtained relative permittivity is compared with the experimental value.A waveguide is formed with the p-silicon-air interface instead of the metal-air interface.Formation and propagation of SPPs similar to MIM waveguides are observed.

Temperature-dependent optical properties of low-loss plasmonic SrMoO_(3)thin films

SrMoO_(3)(SMO)thin films are deposited on LaAlO_(3)substrates by magnetron sputtering.The effects of ambient temperature on the structural,electrical,and optical properties of the films are investigated.As the temperature increases from 23℃ to 800℃,the SMO film exhibits high crystallinity and low electrical resistivity,and the real part of dielectric functions becomes less negative in the visible and near-IR wavelength range,and the epsilon near zero(ENZ)wavelength increases from460 nm to 890 nm.The optical loss of the SMO film is significantly lower than that of Au,and its plasmonic performance is comparable to or even higher than TiN in the temperature range of 23℃ to 600℃.These studies are critical for the design of high-temperature SMO-based plasmonic devices.

Tunable near-infrared plasmonic perfect absorber based on phase-change materials

A tunable plasmonic perfect absorber with a tuning range of 650 nm is realized by introducing a 20 nm thick phase-change material Ge2Sb2Te5 layer into the metal–dielectric–metal configuration.The absorption at the plasmonic resonance is kept above 0.96 across the whole tuning range.In this work we study this extraordinary optical response numerically and reveal the geometric conditions which support this phenomenon.This work shows a promising route to achieve tunable plasmonic devices for multi-band optical modulation,communication,and thermal imaging.

Highly stable two-dimensional graphene oxide:Electronic properties of its periodic structure and optical properties of its nanostructures

According to first principle simulations, we theoretically predict a type of stable single-layer graphene oxide（C_2O）.Using density functional theory（DFT）, C_2O is found to be a direct gap semiconductor. In addition, we obtain the absorption spectra of the periodic structure of C_2O, which show optical anisotropy. To study the optical properties of C_2O nanostructures, time-dependent density functional theory（TDDFT） is used. The C_2O nanostructure has a strong absorption near 7 eV when the incident light polarizes along the armchair-edge. Besides, we find that the optical properties can be controlled by the edge configuration and the size of the C_2O nanostructure. With the elongation strain increasing, the range of light absorption becomes wider and there is a red shift of absorption spectrum.

Passively and actively enhanced surface plasmon resonance sensing strategies towards single molecular detection

Surface plasmonic resonance(SPR)has been a corner stone for approaching single molecular detection due to its highsensitivity capability and simple detection mechanism,and has brought major advancements in biomedicine and life science technology.Over decades,the successful integration of SPR with versatile techniques has been demonstrated.However,several crucial limitations have hindered this technique for practical applications,such as long detection time and low overall sensitivity.This review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of existing approaches in enhancing the performance of SPR sensors based on“passive”and“active”methods.Firstly,passive enhancement is discussed from a material aspect,including signal amplification tags and modifications of conventional substrates.Then,the focus is on the most popular active enhancement methods including electrokinetic,optical,magnetic,and acoustic manipulations that are summarized with highlights on their advantageous features and ability to concentrate target molecules at the detection sites.Lastly,prospects and future development directions for developing SPR sensing towards a more practical,single molecular detection technique in the next generation are discussed.This review hopes to inspire researchers’interests in developing SPR-related technology with more innovative and influential ideas.

High performance of hot-carrier generation,transport and injection in TiN/TiO_(2)junction

Improving the performance of generation,transport and injection of hot carriers within metal/semiconductor junctions is critical for promoting the hot-carrier applications.However,the conversion efficiency of hot carriers in the commonly used noble metals(e.g.,Au)is extremely low.Herein,through a systematic study by first-principles calculation and Monte Carlo simulation,we show that TiN might be a promising plasmonic material for high-efficiency hot-carrier applications.Compared with Au,TiN shows obvious advantages in the generation(high density of low-energy hot electrons)and transport(long lifetime and mean free path)of hot carriers.We further performed a device-oriented study,which reveals that high hotcarrier injection efficiency can be achieved in core/shell cylindrical TiN/TiO_(2)junctions.Our findings provide a deep insight into the intrinsic processes of hot-carrier generation,transport and injection,which is helpful for the development of hot-carrier devices and applications.