Campus Units
Chemistry, Ames Laboratory
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
10-31-2012
Journal or Book Title
The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Volume
116
Issue
47
First Page
24987
Last Page
24992
DOI
10.1021/jp308882w
Abstract
Scanning angle (SA) Raman spectroscopy was used to characterize thin polymer films at a sapphire/50 nm gold film/polystyrene/air interface. When the polymer thickness is greater than ∼260 nm, this interface behaves as a plasmon waveguide; Raman scatter is greatly enhanced with both p- and s-polarized excitation compared to an interface without the gold film. In this study, the reflected light intensities from the interface and Raman spectra were collected as a function of incident angle for three samples with different polystyrene thicknesses. The Raman peak areas were well modeled with the calculated mean-square electric field (MSEF) integrated over the polymer film at varying incident angles. A 412 nm polystyrene plasmon waveguide generated 3.34× the Raman signal at 40.52° (the plasmon waveguide resonance angle) compared to the signal measured at 70.4° (the surface plasmon resonance angle). None of the studied polystyrene plasmon waveguides produced detectable Raman scatter using a 180° backscatter collection geometry, demonstrating the sensitivity of the SA Raman technique. The data highlight the ability to measure polymer thickness, chemical content, and, when combined with calculations of MSEF as a function of distance from the interface, details of polymer structure and order. The SA Raman spectroscopy thickness measurements agreed with those obtained from optical interferometery with an average difference of 2.6%. This technique has the potential to impact the rapidly developing technologies utilizing metal/polymer films for energy storage and electronic devices.
Copyright Owner
American Chemical Society
Copyright Date
2012
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Meyer, Matthew W.; McKee, Kristopher J.; Nguyen, Vy H.T.; and Smith, Emily A., "Scanning Angle Plasmon Waveguide Resonance Raman Spectroscopy for the Analysis of Thin Polystyrene Films" (2012). Chemistry Publications. 903.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/chem_pubs/903
Included in
Materials Chemistry Commons, Organic Chemistry Commons, Other Chemistry Commons, Physical Chemistry Commons
Comments
Reprinted (adapted) with permission from The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 116(47); 24987-24992. Doi: 10.1021/jp308882w. Copyright 2012 American Chemical Society.