Chemistry Scholarships

Nano-fabrication of substrates for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has become an area of intense interest in recent years, spurred by a growing desire to detect analytes (in areas such as water safety and bioterrorism prevention) with ever-increasing speed and sensitivity. It is a highly versatile analytical method, providing spectroscopic fingerprints of chemical and biological materials with significant signal enhancements over normal Raman scattering. Despite the many desirable features of SERS, however, its potential has yet to be fully realised, with progress being hampered by an inability to fabricate SERS-active surfaces with both high sensitivity and reproducibility. SERS depends intimately on the nano-structure of noble metal (e.g. Au, Ag) surfaces, and some of the highest sensitivities have been obtained with surfaces comprised of randomly-arranged nanoparticles. But these surfaces are difficult to manufacture in a controllable and reproducible fashion. The aim of this project is to utilise nano-fabrication tools, such as electron beam lithography, soft lithography and dip-pen nanolithography, to engineer the underlying surface in order to control the ways in which nanoparticles aggregate. This approach should ensure surface-to-surface reproducibility and should also allow the SERS signal to be tuned and maximised. The SERS surfaces will be tested within on going Raman based research programs within the school of chemistry.

This PhD project will be hosted by CSIRO and the School of Chemistry, Monash University.  Applicants must have a 1^st class honour’s degree from Monash University or a qualification deemed equivalent and apply to receive an Australian Postgraduate Award (APA), Monash University Graduate Scholarship and Faculty of Science Dean’s Postgraduate Research Scholarship commencing in 2009. NB. Faculty of Science Dean’s Postgraduate Research Scholarships are a new Science Faculty initiative where it is intended that all Australian citizens or fee exempt residents with a Hons1 degree, supported by a school within the faculty will obtain support. A $7K p.a. stipend top-up scholarship is available to a PhD student for a duration of 3 years.

For further information contact Prof Don McNaughton (School of Chemistry, Monash University, don.mcnaughton@sci.monash.edu.au) or Dr Fiona Scholes (CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, Clayton, fiona.scholes@csiro.au).