SERS of gold/C60 (/C70) nano-clusters deposited on iron surface

Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra of very good quality of gold/C60 (/C70) nano-clusters deposited on iron surface were reported by using the pyridine as a intermediate to connect and nest the C60/C70 molecule to the gap of gold nano-particles and iron substrate. The number of vibrational modes was greatly increased, especially some modes that were forbidden in Raman spectrum, appeared and even split as prediction of group theory. The enhancement factor is 106. It shows from the experiment that the ternary systems of “iron-gold/fullerene” are very effective and active. It provides convenience for probing the C60/C70 vibrational structure, the physical properties and structural perturbation induced by the substrate upon the fullerene cage with the high sensitivity, in particular, the adsorption behavior, the interaction of fullerene with the metal surface and the SERS mechanism of molecules nested between the gold nano-particles and the metal surface.