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Semiconducting nanoplatelets (NPLs) have attracted great attention due to the superior photophysical properties compared to their quantum dot analogs. Understanding and tuning the optical and electronic properties of NPLs in a plasmonic environment is a new paradigm in the field of optoelectronics. Here, we report on the resonant plasmon enhancement of light emission including Raman scattering and photoluminescence from colloidal CdSe/CdS nanoplatelets deposited on arrays of Au nanodisks fabricated by electron beam lithography. The localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the Au nanodisk arrays can be tuned by varying the diameter of the disks. In the case of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), the Raman intensity profile follows a symmetric Gaussian shape matching the LSPR of the Au nanodisk arrays. The surface-enhanced photoluminescence (SEPL) profile of NPLs, however, follows an asymmetric Gaussian distribution highlighting a compromise between the excitation and emission enhancement mechanisms originating from energy transfer and Purcell effects. The SERS and SEPL enhancement factors depend on the nanodisk size and reach maximal values at 75 and 7, respectively, for the sizes, for which the LSPR energy of Au nanodisks coincides with interband transition energies in the semiconductor platelets. Finally, to explain the origin of the resonant enhancement behavior of SERS and SEPL, we apply a numerical simulation to calculate plasmon energies in Au nanodisk arrays and emission spectra from NPLs in such a plasmonic environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents an overview of the latest results and new data on the optical response from spherical CdSe nanocrystals (NCs) obtained using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS). SERS is based on the enhancement of the phonon response from nanoobjects such as molecules or inorganic nanostructures placed on metal nanostructured substrates with a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). A drastic SERS enhancement for optical phonons in semiconductor nanostructures can be achieved by a proper choice of the plasmonic substrate, for which the LSPR energy coincides with the laser excitation energy. The resonant enhancement of the optical response makes it possible to detect mono- and submonolayer coatings of CdSe NCs. The combination of Raman scattering with atomic force microscopy (AFM) using a metallized probe represents the basis of TERS from semiconductor nanostructures and makes it possible to investigate their phonon properties with nanoscale spatial resolution. Gap-mode TERS provides further enhancement of Raman scattering by optical phonon modes of CdSe NCs with nanometer spatial resolution due to the highly localized electric field in the gap between the metal AFM tip and a plasmonic substrate and opens new pathways for the optical characterization of single semiconductor nanostructures and for revealing details of their phonon spectrum at the nanometer scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intensity of the line of antisymmetric vibrations of CH2 in the Raman spectrum of molecular layers of fatty acids and phospholipids is sensitive both to the molecular order in the layer (lateral order) and to the conformational order of the hydrocarbon chain of the molecule. Though the intensity of this line is widely used as an indicator of order in molecular layers containing hydrocarbon tails, the nature of sensitivity of the line of antisymmetric vibrations to the order is still disputable. This issue has been experimentally studied, and it has been demonstrated that disordering leads to redistribution of vibrational modes and to changes in polarizability of antisymmetric vibrations. A hypothesis is proposed that the intensity of the line of the Raman scattering of antisymmetric vibrations of CH2 is determined to a large extent by their interaction with electron excitation of the hydrocarbon chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phonon occupation is temperature (T) dependent; it may participate in scattering with electronic states of topological insulators (TIs). Longitudinal optical (LO) phonons A1g1$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^1 $$ and A1g2$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^2 $$ in Bi2 − xSbxTe3 − ySey (BSTS) was resonantly excited by a photon energy (Ep) 2.33 eV due to electronic transition of unoccupied conduction band. The intensity of these modes was enhanced in Bi2Te3 film at Ep 1.87 eV, which is close to the electronic transition of unoccupied Dirac states. Fröhlich coupling strength was the main mechanism for higher intensity of A1g1$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^1 $$ and A1g2$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^2 $$ modes. At 300 K, the intensity of the A1g2$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^2 $$ mode was significantly decayed in both the BSTS and Bi2Te3 at Ep 2.33 and 1.87 eV due to the anharmonic coupling. However, at similar value of T, spectral profile of A1g1$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^1 $$ and Eg2$$ {\mathrm{E}}_g^2 $$ modes was not affected because of the lower probability of decay rate of these phonons. In resonant condition, well‐resolved Raman forbidden surface modes were observed at T of 50 K. At 300 K, more asymmetric Fano profile of surface phonon was observed due to the anharmonic coupling. The study indicated that at high T, A1g1$$ {\mathrm{A}}_{1g}^1 $$ mode and anharmonic coupling may become primary cause for scattering with electronic states of the TIs. However, at low T, primarily, both the LO phonons participated in the scattering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brillouin scattering by anisotropic Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) films is studied here. The films are composed of behenic acid doped with CdS and CuS nanocrystals distributed in the matrix of the behenic acid. The sound velocities along and perpendicular to the film surface are determined. The influence of nanocrystals on the LB film anisotropy and sound velocities is discussed. The Langmuir–Blodgett film composed of behenic acid molecules reveals anisotropic elastic properties for the sound waves propagated along and perpendicular to the film surface. Semiconductor nanocrystals embedded in the films reduce the anisotropy and change the elastic properties of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface- and tip-enhanced resonant Raman scattering (resonant SERS and TERS) by optical phonons in a monolayer of CdSe quantum dots (QDs) is demonstrated. The SERS enhancement was achieved by employing plasmonically active substrates consisting of gold arrays with varying nanocluster diameters prepared by electron-beam lithography. The magnitude of the SERS enhancement depends on the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) energy, which is determined by the structural parameters. The LSPR positions as a function of nanocluster diameter were experimentally determined from spectroscopic micro-ellipsometry, and compared to numerical simulations showing good qualitative agreement. The monolayer of CdSe QDs was deposited by the Langmuir-Blodgett-based technique on the SERS substrates. By tuning the excitation energy close to the band gap of the CdSe QDs and to the LSPR energy, resonant SERS by longitudinal optical (LO) phonons of CdSe QDs was realized. A SERS enhancement factor of 2 × 10(3) was achieved. This allowed the detection of higher order LO modes of CdSe QDs, evidencing the high crystalline quality of QDs. The dependence of LO phonon mode intensity on the size of Au nanoclusters reveals a resonant character, suggesting that the electromagnetic mechanism of the SERS enhancement is dominant. Finally, the resonant TERS spectrum from CdSe QDs was obtained using electrochemically etched gold tips providing an enhancement on the order of 10(4). This is an important step towards the detection of the phonon spectrum from a single QD.