Fabrication of a simple SERS-active substrate based on gold-coated chemically generated alumina nanowires

A surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-active substrate was simply fabricated by gold coating on chemically generated alumina nanowires. A porous alumina film was prepared by anodization of aluminum, and the corresponding gel-like porous film was etched in a diluted NaOH solution to produce densely packed alumina nanowires. The alumina nanowires were then coated with gold using an ion coater. The SERS activity of the nanowires was compared with that of a glass plate, which was used as the control, and the enhanced activity of the gold-coated alumina nanowire substrate was verified at low concentrations of sodium acetate. This study describes an easily prepared and effective substrate for the detection of various molecules.