Streamlined Fabrication and Acoustofluidic Purification of Silver-Decorated Polystyrene Microspheres (PS-AgNPs) for SERS Applications.

ABSTRACT: Composite microspheres of polystyrene and silver (PS-AgNPs) are highly valuable materials for catalysis, sensing, and antibacterial applications, yet their fabrication and subsequent purification remain challenging. This work presents a streamlined pathway for PS-AgNPs production, initiated by our finding that commercially available polystyrene (PS) microspheres (diameters ≥5 μm) anchor residual stabilizing polymeric structures that spontaneously facilitate the firm attachment of premade silver nanoparticles. The purified PS-AgNPs microspheres were evaluated as potential surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates using adenine and thiamine as probe molecules, showing uniform SERS responses (coefficient of variation ≈ 10%) and limits of detection (LOD) of 100 nM and 1 μM, respect

SUBMITTER: Novotny J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12797264 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature