Tip-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy
Takayuki Umakoshi and Prabhat Verma
Abstract Visible light can interact efficiently with the vibronic and electronic
systems of a sample and fetch rich information about the intrinsic features, such
as the chemical, physical and biological properties of the sample. Optical techniques
have therefore been convenient tools for a long time to analyze and image various
materials. However, the spatial resolution in optical microscopy is restricted by the
diffraction limit of light, making it impossible to study samples much smaller than the
wavelength of the probing light. This restriction can be overcome if a conventional
optical microscopy, such as Raman microscopy, is combined with near-field techniques. Tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS) is such a technique. It utilizes a
sharp metallic nano-tip to intensely enhance and strongly confine light within a tiny
volume near the tip-apex and enables characterization of samples at the nanoscale.
In this Chapter, we discuss the details of this technique and explain how light can be
tightly confined into a nanometric volume for true nanoscale exploration of samples.
TERS is still a young technique and has been going through a rapid development
in the past two decades, which has not only made it more reliable and sturdier over
the period, but has also brought this apparently complicated technique out from
the laboratories of the veterans to the market for researchers who are experts in
different fields. This has obviously happened with improved adaptability, flexibility
and robustness with possibilities of a wide range of applications. We will discuss
some interesting applications and related instrumentations for TERS.
Keywords Tip-enhanced raman scattering · Plasmonics · Near-field optics ·
Near-field scanning optical microscopy · Raman spectroscopy
T. Umakoshi · P. Verma (B)
Department of Applied Physics, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Osaka, Japan
e-mail: verma@ap.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
D. K. Singh et al. (eds.), Modern Techniques of Spectroscopy, Progress in Optical Science
and Photonics 13, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6084-6_8
209
Takayuki Umakoshi and Prabhat Verma
Abstract Visible light can interact efficiently with the vibronic and electronic
systems of a sample and fetch rich information about the intrinsic features, such
as the chemical, physical and biological properties of the sample. Optical techniques
have therefore been convenient tools for a long time to analyze and image various
materials. However, the spatial resolution in optical microscopy is restricted by the
diffraction limit of light, making it impossible to study samples much smaller than the
wavelength of the probing light. This restriction can be overcome if a conventional
optical microscopy, such as Raman microscopy, is combined with near-field techniques. Tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS) is such a technique. It utilizes a
sharp metallic nano-tip to intensely enhance and strongly confine light within a tiny
volume near the tip-apex and enables characterization of samples at the nanoscale.
In this Chapter, we discuss the details of this technique and explain how light can be
tightly confined into a nanometric volume for true nanoscale exploration of samples.
TERS is still a young technique and has been going through a rapid development
in the past two decades, which has not only made it more reliable and sturdier over
the period, but has also brought this apparently complicated technique out from
the laboratories of the veterans to the market for researchers who are experts in
different fields. This has obviously happened with improved adaptability, flexibility
and robustness with possibilities of a wide range of applications. We will discuss
some interesting applications and related instrumentations for TERS.
Keywords Tip-enhanced raman scattering · Plasmonics · Near-field optics ·
Near-field scanning optical microscopy · Raman spectroscopy
T. Umakoshi · P. Verma (B)
Department of Applied Physics, Osaka University, 2-1 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Osaka, Japan
e-mail: verma@ap.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
D. K. Singh et al. (eds.), Modern Techniques of Spectroscopy, Progress in Optical Science
and Photonics 13, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6084-6_8
209