Silver nanoparticle-treated paper as a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate for seminal plasma analysis

In this work, filter paper-based SERS substrate was fabricated by soaking the filter paper with concentrated silver colloids, and the time-dependent silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) distribution on filter paper were characterized in detail. SERS spectra of seminal plasma over different soaking time were obtained to optimize the performance for potential application. Our results showed that a more uniform distribution of AgNPs on the surface of filter paper was achieved with the increase of soaking time, and optimum SERS spectra of seminal plasma can be achieved at 12h. Filter paper-based SERS substrate can provide a simple and powerful platform for sensitive and reproducible Raman analysis of seminal plasma as well as other kinds of human body fluids.