Particle-in-Molybdenum Disulfide-Coated Cavity Structure with a Raman Internal Standard for Sensitive Raman Detection of Water Contaminants from Ions to <300 nm Nanoplastics

To develop a universal and precise detection strategy that can be applied to water contaminants of various sizes, we designed a particle-in-MoS2 coated cavity structure of AAO/MoS2/Ag with a Raman internal standard. This modified particle-in-cavity structure not only successfully integrates both surface hot spots and volume hot spots via dressing and manipulating the cascaded optical-field mode inside the cavity but also introduces the chemical enhancement and internal standard attribute of MoS2. Because of its unique three-dimensional structure, AAO/MoS2/Ag accurately detects water contaminants of various sizes from ions to nanoplastics (<300 nm) for the first time. This work proposes a novel and universal surface-enhanced Raman scattering strategy for detecting multiple-size water contaminants and demonstrates the potential to build a security line in early warning systems for the prevention of water pollution.

Automated summary

This study presents a precise detection strategy using a particle-in-cavity structure to detect water contaminants of various sizes. It demonstrates the potential of building an early warning system for water pollution.