{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]],"date-time":"2026-03-19T17:00:06Z","timestamp":1773939606340,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]],"date-time":"2026-03-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1773878400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["52471211"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["52471211"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"Inner Mongolia Metal Materials Institute"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) holds great promise for ultrasensitive chemical analysis but is often limited by the trade-off between performance and fabrication simplicity. This work presents a facile strategy to prepare monolayer silver microplates combining the top-down and bottom-up fabrication concepts. Silver microplates with uniform nanoscale thickness (~93.5 nm) and micron-scale lateral size (D50 = 3.33 \u00b5m) are prepared via a scalable mechanical ball-milling process. These silver microplates served as building blocks for spontaneous interfacial self-assembly at the air\/water interface to form a macroscopically continuous monolayer film. The silver microplate monolayer film is transferred onto a plasma-treated silicon wafer as a SERS substrate. The resulting SERS substrate exhibits a porous, network-like microstructure composed of densely packed microplates, which generates a high density of electromagnetic hot spots at the nanogaps. Using Rhodamine 6G as a probe molecule, the substrate demonstrates a SERS detection limit of as low as 1 nM and good spatial uniformity with a relative standard deviation of ~9.94%. This study provides a cost-effective and scalable self-assembly route of physically reshaped silver microplates to fabricate high-performance SERS substrates.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s26061943","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]],"date-time":"2026-03-19T15:38:01Z","timestamp":1773934681000},"page":"1943","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Physically Reshaped Silver Microplates Formed Monolayer Assemblies at Air\/Water Interface as High-Performance SERS Substrates"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"Aoran","family":"Cui","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Shaojing","family":"Su","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dongfang Electric Corporation Academy of Science and Technology, Co., Ltd., Chengdu 610093, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Tianle","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yaqin","family":"Liao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dongfang Electric Corporation Academy of Science and Technology, Co., Ltd., Chengdu 610093, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Shikuan","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"28","DOI":"10.1021\/acsnano.9b04224","article-title":"Present and Future of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering","volume":"14","author":"Langer","year":"2020","journal-title":"ACS Nano"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"783","DOI":"10.1103\/RevModPhys.57.783","article-title":"Surface-enhanced spectroscopy","volume":"57","author":"Moskovits","year":"1985","journal-title":"Rev. Mod. Phys."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12616","DOI":"10.1021\/ja8051427","article-title":"Probing the Structure of Single-Molecule Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Hot Spots","volume":"130","author":"Camden","year":"2008","journal-title":"J. Am. Chem. Soc."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7426","DOI":"10.1021\/jp027749b","article-title":"Plasmon-Sampled Surface-Enhanced Raman Excitation Spectroscopy","volume":"107","author":"Haynes","year":"2003","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4756","DOI":"10.1002\/anie.201205748","article-title":"Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy: Concepts and Chemical Applications","volume":"53","year":"2014","journal-title":"Angew. Chem. Int. Ed."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5215","DOI":"10.1021\/ja00457a071","article-title":"Anomalously intense Raman spectra of pyridine at a silver electrode","volume":"99","author":"Albrecht","year":"1977","journal-title":"J. Am. Chem. Soc."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1535","DOI":"10.1007\/s10853-014-8713-2","article-title":"Microstructural evolution and microhardness variations in a Cu\u201336Zn\u20132Pb alloy processed by high-pressure torsion","volume":"50","author":"Zhang","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"549","DOI":"10.1038\/nnano.2007.252","article-title":"Multiscale patterning of plasmonic metamaterials","volume":"2","author":"Henzie","year":"2007","journal-title":"Nat. Nanotechnol."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"442","DOI":"10.1038\/nmat2162","article-title":"Biosensing with plasmonic nanosensors","volume":"7","author":"Anker","year":"2008","journal-title":"Nat. Mater."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Pilot, R., Signorini, R., Durante, C., Orian, L., Bhamidipati, M., and Fabris, L. (2019). A Review on Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering. Biosensors, 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/bios9020057"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"827","DOI":"10.1038\/39827","article-title":"Capillary flow as the cause of ring stains from dried liquid drops","volume":"389","author":"Deegan","year":"1997","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3669","DOI":"10.1021\/cr100275d","article-title":"Controlling the Synthesis and Assembly of Silver Nanostructures for Plasmonic Applications","volume":"111","author":"Rycenga","year":"2011","journal-title":"Chem. Rev."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"668","DOI":"10.1021\/jp026731y","article-title":"The Optical Properties of Metal Nanoparticles: The Influence of Size, Shape, and Dielectric Environment","volume":"107","author":"Kelly","year":"2003","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. B"},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"15","DOI":"10.1038\/nnano.2009.453","article-title":"Properties and emerging applications of self-assembled structures made from inorganic nanoparticles","volume":"5","author":"Nie","year":"2010","journal-title":"Nat. Nanotechnol."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1600","DOI":"10.1002\/smll.200900358","article-title":"Nanoscale Forces and Their Uses in Self-Assembly","volume":"5","author":"Bishop","year":"2009","journal-title":"Small"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"487","DOI":"10.1038\/nature02020","article-title":"Controlling anisotropic nanoparticle growth through plasmon excitation","volume":"425","author":"Jin","year":"2003","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"353","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.200390087","article-title":"One-Dimensional Nanostructures: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications","volume":"15","author":"Xia","year":"2003","journal-title":"Adv. Mater."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5639","DOI":"10.1002\/anie.200460920","article-title":"Directing Self-Assembly of Nanoparticles at Water\/Oil Interfaces","volume":"43","author":"Duan","year":"2004","journal-title":"Angew. Chem. Int. Ed."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"139","DOI":"10.1038\/nmat3839","article-title":"Flat optics with designer metasurfaces","volume":"13","author":"Yu","year":"2014","journal-title":"Nat. Mater."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13777","DOI":"10.1007\/s10854-021-05954-y","article-title":"Tuning the electrical resistivity of conductive silver paste prepared by blending multimorphologies and micro-nanometers silver powder","volume":"32","author":"Liu","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci. Mater. Electron."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2034","DOI":"10.1021\/nl0515753","article-title":"Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Spectroscopy of Single Silver Nanocubes","volume":"5","author":"Sherry","year":"2005","journal-title":"Nano Lett."},{"key":"ref_22","first-page":"1107","article-title":"Self-Assembly of Nanoparticles at Interfaces","volume":"26","author":"Yang","year":"2014","journal-title":"Prog. Chem."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7","DOI":"10.1016\/j.aca.2011.03.002","article-title":"A review on the fabrication of substrates for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy and their applications in analytical chemistry","volume":"693","author":"Fan","year":"2011","journal-title":"Anal. Chim. ACTA"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9817","DOI":"10.1039\/C4NR02648A","article-title":"Solution processed polydimethylsiloxane\/gold nanostar flexible substrates for plasmonic sensing","volume":"6","author":"Shiohara","year":"2014","journal-title":"Nanoscale"},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1667","DOI":"10.1103\/PhysRevLett.78.1667","article-title":"Single Molecule Detection Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS)","volume":"78","author":"Kneipp","year":"1997","journal-title":"Phys. Rev. Lett."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6262","DOI":"10.1021\/ac404224f","article-title":"Self-assembly of Au nanoparticles on PMMA template as flexible, transparent, and highly active SERS substrates","volume":"86","author":"Zhong","year":"2014","journal-title":"Anal. Chem."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"695","DOI":"10.1007\/s00216-009-2792-y","article-title":"Capillary electrophoresis and column chromatography in biomedical chiral amino acid analysis","volume":"394","author":"Waldhier","year":"2009","journal-title":"Anal. Bioanal. Chem."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2149","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.analchem.5b03735","article-title":"Flexible and Adhesive Surface Enhance Raman Scattering Active Tape for Rapid Detection of Pesticide Residues in Fruits and Vegetables","volume":"88","author":"Chen","year":"2016","journal-title":"Anal. Chem."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"125920","DOI":"10.1016\/j.saa.2025.125920","article-title":"Fabrication of a flexible nanofiber membrane for SERS detection of pollutants: An efficient and eco-friendly approach","volume":"334","author":"Bai","year":"2025","journal-title":"Spectrochim. Acta Part A Mol. Biomol. Spectrosc."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"37538","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.0c07178","article-title":"Rapid Fabrication of a Flexible and Transparent Ag Nanocubes@PDMS Film as a SERS Substrate with High Performance","volume":"12","author":"Li","year":"2020","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Yan, X., Shi, H., Jia, P., and Sun, X. (2022). Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Tunable Ag@PDMS Substrate for High Sensitivity and Uniformity SERS Detection. Nanomaterials, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/nano12213894"},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2689","DOI":"10.1364\/OL.524709","article-title":"Optofluidic SERS based on Ag nanocubes with high sensitivity for detecting a prevalent water pollutant","volume":"49","author":"Na","year":"2024","journal-title":"Opt. Lett."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2731","DOI":"10.1021\/jp8098736","article-title":"Correlating the Structure, Optical Spectra, and Electrodynamics of Single Silver Nanocubes","volume":"113","author":"McMahon","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. C"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"051304","DOI":"10.1103\/PhysRevE.75.051304","article-title":"Underconstrained jammed packings of nonspherical hard particles: Ellipses and ellipsoids","volume":"75","author":"Donev","year":"2007","journal-title":"Phys. Rev. E"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13794","DOI":"10.1021\/jp0687908","article-title":"Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering Enhancement Factors: A Comprehensive Study","volume":"111","author":"Le","year":"2007","journal-title":"J. Phys. Chem. C"}],"container-title":["Sensors"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1424-8220\/26\/6\/1943\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]],"date-time":"2026-03-19T15:41:08Z","timestamp":1773934868000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1424-8220\/26\/6\/1943"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]]},"references-count":35,"journal-issue":{"issue":"6","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3]]}},"alternative-id":["s26061943"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/s26061943","relation":{},"ISSN":["1424-8220"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1424-8220","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]]}}}