Fingerprinting CBRNE Materials Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering

摘要

One approach to CBRNE detection is analytical monitoring with portable spectroscopy systems. Such a technique needsto work in adverse environments, be amenable to use by field operators, and, given the sensitive nature of the targetmaterials, should have an extremely rapid response time with no false negatives. This research demonstrates thatsurface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is capable of detecting ppb levels of CBRNE materials with high sensitivityand no false positives. We present reproducible and selective detection using novel SERS structures that exhibit aninherently uniform surface morphology, leading to rapid, reproducible manufacturing. Our work includes receiver-operator characteristic (ROC) curves for the detection of both conventional and improvised nitro explosives at lowsignal-to-noise ratios. We also present the detection of added CBRNE materials including chemical and biologicalagents as well as nuclear enriching materials. Our expertise extends to instrumentation of portable, robust Ramanspectrographs that can be packaged with our sensors for a versatile security tool with applications extending from pointsof entry to points of production, from people to objects and freight.