Synthesis of size tunable monodispersed silver nanoparticles and the effect of size on SERS enhancement

Spherical and monodispersed silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are ideal for fundamental research as the contribution from size and shape can be accounted for in the experimental design. In this paper a seeded growth method is presented, whereby varying the concentration of sodium borohydride-reduced silver nanoparticle seeds, different sizes of stable spherical nanoparticles with a low polydispersity nanoparticles are produced using hydroquinone as a selective reducing agent. The surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factor for each nanoparticle size produced (17, 26, 50, and 65 nm) was then assessed using three different analytes, rhodamine 6G (R6G), malachite green oxalate (MGO) and thiophenol (TP). The enhancement factor gives an indication of the Raman enhancement effect by the nanoparticle. Using non-aggregated conditions and two different laser excitation wavelength (633 nm and 785 nm) it is shown that an increase in particle size results in an increased enhancement for each analyte used.