When: July 22, 11:00
Where: Skoltech, MR-426 (Blue building)
Seminar:
Improving the efficiency of SERS-encoded nanotags: Synthesis core-satellite structures
Dr. Nicolas Pazos-Perez
Department of Physical and Inorganic Chemistry, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Tarragona, Spain.
Research Center on Engineering of Materials and micro/nanoSystems (EMaS), Tarragona, Spain.
Abstract:
SERS encoded nanoparticles (SEPs) are becoming a powerful method to solve analytical problems in complex media. In general, SEPs are made of a plasmonic core, a SERS encoding agent, and a protective layer. However, although SEPs composed of single plasmonic particles are desirable because of their homogeneous SERS signals.1 Their efficiency is limited because they cannot form hot spots. Therefore, to improve the SERS efficiency keeping consistent signals at the nanometer regime (ca. 100 nm), encoded core-satellites structures are of particular importance. Therefore, in this seminar, a synthetic approach to produce homogeneous core-satellite SERS encoded particles will be presented. These structures have minimal interparticle gaps (< 2-3 nm) and maximum particle loading. Additionally, the encoding agents are strategically positioned at the hot spots presenting therefore outstanding optical performances with homogeneous enhancement factors over 4 orders of magnitude as compared with classical SERS encoded particles.2
BIO:
Nicolas Pazos-Perez has a Chemistry BSc degree from the University of Vigo (2004). During his Ph.D. studies he was involve in a Marie Curie Research Training Network and therefore, was moving between Spain (Colloidal Chemistry Group, Vigo), France (LCC/CNRs, Toulouse) and Germany (Center of Advanced Studies and Research, Bonn). He received his Ph.D. degree in Physical Chemistry in 2008 from the University of Vigo. After a short perdiod as postdoc at Vigo, he joined the Department of Physical Chemistry II at the University of Bayreuth (Germany) and, almost 5 years later, he moves back to Spain (Tarragona), and become a Senior Researcher officer at Medcom Advance. In 2014 he became a Marie Curie Fellow to join the Zeptonic group (Department of Physical and Inorganic Chemistry) at the University Rovira i Virgili (URV). In 2016 he joined Medcom Tech as Senior Researcher officer. Currently (since 2017) he is back at the URV as a Ramon y Cajal researcher in the Zeptonic group.He is focused in the wet chemical synthesis of plasmonic nanoparticles controlling their shape and size, functionalization, coating, and their self-assembly into ordered structures at the nano and macro scales. To controll their individual and collective plasmonic response and for the development of highly efficient SERS-encoded nanoparticles and substrates.