A novel strategy for improving SERS activity by cerium ion f → d transitions for rapid detection of endocrine disruptor

Semiconductor doping offers a wide range of applications in fields from catalysis to electronics. However, for Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), not many studies are conducted for the commercialisation of this technology. A simple method was developed to synthesise ultra-stable, repeatable, uniform Ce-doped ZnO (Zn1−xCexO) with a high SERS activity. The SERS signals of 4-MPy collected on Zn1−xCexO exhibited 118 times higher enhancement than those of ZnO. Cerium ion f → d transitions dominated Charge transfer (CT) is the main cause for this enhancement. The prepared Zn1−xCexO nanoparticles (NPs) can be used to detect Bisphenol A (BPA) with a detection limit of 0.0001 ppm. To our best knowledge, this is the optimum performance reported for semiconductor substrates. Our work paves a way towards highly sensitivity, great-uniformity, high-stability, fast-detection and cost-effective SERS substrates, which can be a promising tool in high-sensitivity contaminant monitoring.