Investigation of parameters influencing surface enhanced raman scattering spectra of bacteria

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy is powerful technique for fast identification and characterization of microorganisms. However, due to the heterogeneity of the prepared sample, the experimental conditions must be optimized. In this study, parameters of influencing the Surface-enhanced Raman spectrum of bacteria are investigated and the experimental conditions are optimized. First, ratio of bacteria to nanoparticles in the mixture is investigated and optimized. Using this ratio, the influence of the other parameters such as laser wavelength, pH and concentration of nanoparticles suspension, nanoparticles surface charge, type and size are investigated This study not only demostrates optimum experimental conditions for bacterial SERS but also the applicability of obtaining moleculer information from bacteria cells by changing the experimental parameters. Key words: Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering, SERS, Bacteria, Identification, Nanoparticles, Plasmons