Ag nanocubes monolayer-modified PDMS as flexible SERS substrates for pesticides sensing.

A new approach is presented to fabricate flexible surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate of Ag nanocubes monolayer-modified polydimethylsiloxane (Ag NCs/PDMS) through a powerful three-phase interface self-assemble method. The morphologies and crystal structures were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The self-assembled Ag NCs/PDMS substrate exhibited high SERS activity and good signal homogeneity, which was successfully used for quantitative detection of thiram; the detection limit reached 10 ng/mL, and the linear range is 10-1000 ng/mL. Furthermore, the flexible SERS substrates were successfully employed to detect thiram residues on factual apple samples, and trace amount (1 ng/cm2) of thiram residues was detected on apple peels. The excellent SERS detection ability of self-assembled Ag NCs/PDMS substrate indicated that it will play an important role in pesticide detection in the future.

High-performance Pt/Ti3C2Tx MXene based graphene electrochemical transistor for selective detection of dopamine.

Accurate measurement of dopamine (DA) is of great significance for human health monitoring and disease prevention. Herein, two-dimensional Ti3C2Tx MXene with high performance was prepared by layer liquid exfoliation method and used for the modification of gate electrode. The glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with Pt/Ti3C2Tx was used as the gate, and assembled with monolayer graphene channel to form a complete transistor device. The device combines the amplification effect of transistors, good electrical conductivity of Ti3C2Tx MXene and excellent catalytic properties of Pt nanoparticles, showing a low detection limit (50 nM) and a wide detection concentration range (50 nM-9 mM) of DA. Ti3C2Tx MXene not only provides a large number of attachment sites for the deposition of Pt nanoparticles, but also improves the electrical conductivity and hydrophilicity of the electrode material, thus enhancing the sensitivity of the device and facilitating the penetration of the solution to be measured. In addition, Ti3C2Tx MXene is negatively charged, it has a certain electrostatic adsorption effect on protonated DA and electrostatic repulsion effect on negatively charged interfering substances. As a result, the device exhibits good selectivity, which provides a great application prospect for the construction of DA sensing platform.