Single molecule Raman spectroscopy and local work function fluctuations

TL;DR

This paper investigates the fluctuations in single molecule Raman spectra, attributing them to local work function variations and surface dynamics, and introduces a model to extract work function distributions from spectral data.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis linking spectral fluctuations to local work function changes and surface dynamics, offering a new method to quantify these variations.

Findings

Fluctuation intensity ratios are independent of laser power.

Local work function distribution can be derived from spectral intensity ratios.

Fluctuation rates decrease in more viscous fluids, indicating surface dynamics involvement.

Abstract

Single molecule Raman spectroscopy provides information on individual molecules with vibrational-level resolution. The unique mechanisms leading to the huge Raman cross-section enhancement necessary for single molecule sensitivity are under intense investigation in several laboratories. We recently analyzed large spectral fluctuations in single molecule spectra of rhodamine 6G on silver surfaces (A. Weiss and G. Haran, J. Phys. Chem. B (2001), 105, 12348-12354). The appearance of the fluctuations in two particular vibrational bands, and their dependence on several parameters, suggested that they originate in a charge transfer interaction of an adsorbed molecule with the surface. We argued that the fluctuations are due to variations of the local work function at the position of the molecule. In the current paper the fluctuations are further analyzed in terms of the intensity ratio between a fluctuating and a quiescent band, and it is found that the distribution of this ratio is independent of laser power, unlike the correlation time of the fluctuations. We show that a simple model, based on the energetics of charge transfer, can be used to extract the local work function distribution from the intensity ratio distribution. In a second experiment, single molecule spectra are collected from colloids immersed in water and in glycerol and a threefold decrease in fluctuation rate is found in the more viscous fluid. This indicates that surface dynamics are indeed responsible for the fluctuations, involving the motion of the adsorbed molecule and possibly also that of surface silver atoms around it.