Katrin Kneipp - Böcker

Developing innovative efficient and sensitive spectroscopic and optical techniques for studying biomedically relevant molecules, structures and processes in vitro and in vivo is a field of rapidly growing interest. This symposium book covers novel and exciting approaches in biomedical spectroscopy. Several chapters deal with infrared and Raman spectroscopy. These complimentary vibrational spectroscopic techniques are capable of monitoring molecular structures as wellas structural changes. Such studies are of interest for understanding diseases at a molecular level as well as for developing techniques for efficient early diagnosis based on molecular structural information. The chapters demonstrate also applications vibrational spectroscopy in proteomics and thecharacterization of micro organisms. The second section of the book introduces surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), demonstrates the application of the effect in the biomedical field and develops the concept of multifunctional nanosensors. The measurement of intrinsic optical signals from biological objects such as nerve tissue are discussed in the next section of the book. Chapters deal also with Coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) and fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy.Other chapters illustrate how photons of very different energies, in the Terahertz and in the ultra violet range, can be used to retrieve molecular structural information from native biomolecules. The electrical properties of protein molecules adsorbed onto a gold substrate are studied by using ascanning Kelvin nanoprobe in a microarray format. The final chapters in the book demonstrate the powerful combination of different spectroscopic techniques for the characterization of biomolecules as well as native and engineered biomaterials. These chapters combine information from Raman and Inelastic Neutron Scattering, optical absorbance and energy dispersive X-ray analysis, positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS), 1H NMR, and 129Xe NMR X-ray diffraction and fluorescenceresonance energy transfer.

A comprehensive presentation of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) theory, substrate fabrication, applications of SERS to biosystems, chemical analysis, sensing and fundamental innovation through experimentation. Written by internationally recognized editors and contributors. Relevant to all those within the scientific community dealing with Raman Spectroscopy, i.e. physicists, chemists, biologists, material scientists, physicians and biomedical scientists. SERS applications are widely expanding and the technology is now used in the field of nanotechnologies, applications to biosystems, nonosensors, nanoimaging and nanoscience.

Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) might be one of the most impressive effects to demonstrate the power of plasmonic approaches in spectroscopy and became one of the "triggers" for the rapidly emerging field of plasmonics.This book provides a review of some recent developments in SERS, such as tip enhanced Raman scattering (TERS), reports new experimental observations, sophisticated new SERS-active structures and substrates, new theoretical insight to explain the effect as well as exciting applications in various fields such as analytical science, biomedicine and nanotechnology.Written for graduate students and established researchers looking for inspiration for future work, its interdisciplinary nature makes the book suitable for readers in the fields of chemistry, physics, biology, medicine, nanotechnology and materials science.

Almost 30 years after the first reports on surface-enhanced Raman signals, the phenomenon of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is now well established. Yet, explaining the enhancement of a spectroscopic signal by fouteen orders of magnitude continues to attract the attention of physicists and chemists alike. And, at the same time and rapidly growing, SERS is becoming a very useful spectroscopic tool with exciting applications in many fields. SERS gained particular interest after single-molecule Raman spectroscopy had been demonstrated. This bookl summarizes and discusses present theoretical approaches that explain the phenomenon of SERS and reports on new and exciting experiments and applications of the fascinating spectroscopic effect.