Surface Plasmon Resonance Techniques for Biosensing Applications

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) exploits the collective oscillation of electrons at a metal–dielectric interface to achieve real-time, label-free detection of biomolecular interactions. When a beam of polarized light is coupled to surface plasmons—commonly via a prism or grating—the resonance condition shifts in response to minute refractive index changes near the sensor surface. Variations of this principle include wavelength- and phase-interrogation schemes, localised SPR (LSPR) on nanoparticle arrays and imaging modalities for multiplexed analysis. Integration with microfluidics and the incorporation of advanced nanomaterials, such as two-dimensional crystals and metamaterials, have further enhanced sensitivity, selectivity and throughput. As a versatile platform, SPR underpins applications ranging from medical diagnostics and environmental monitoring to food safety, offering engineers and scientists a robust tool for quantitative, kinetic and thermodynamic studies of binding events.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have harnessed two-dimensional materials to push the sensitivity of SPR platforms closer to single-molecule detection. A novel sensor exploiting antimonene on a gold substrate has demonstrated ultrasensitive detection of microRNA biomarkers, achieving attomolar detection limits for clinically relevant nucleic acids without fluorescent labels. Another line of enquiry has combined silicon nanosheets with transition metal dichalcogenides to engineer hybrid metal–dielectric interfaces, yielding record-high resonance shifts and improved signal-to-noise ratios across the visible and near-infrared spectrum. These approaches underline the trend towards integrating emerging nanomaterials with classical SPR architectures to refine both sensitivity and selectivity.

Surface Plasmon Resonance Techniques for Biosensing Applications publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in surface plasmon resonance techniques for biosensing applications across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR): An optical phenomenon arising from the collective oscillation of conduction electrons at a metal–dielectric interface, used to detect changes in refractive index near the surface.

Localised Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR): Resonant oscillation of electrons confined within metallic nanoparticles, sensitive to the surrounding dielectric environment.

Phase singularity: A point of abrupt phase change in the reflected light under resonance conditions, exploited for ultra-high sensitivity interrogation.

Metamaterial: An artificially structured material engineered to exhibit optical properties not found in naturally occurring substances, often used to tailor plasmonic responses.

Refractive index unit (RIU): A dimensionless measure of change in refractive index, commonly used to quantify sensor sensitivity.

References

1. Surface Plasmon Resonance: A Versatile Technique for Biosensor Applications. Sensors (2015).
2. Ultrasensitive detection of miRNA with an antimonene-based surface plasmon resonance sensor. Nature Communications (2019).
3. Sensitivity Enhancement of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides/Silicon Nanostructure-based Surface Plasmon Resonance Biosensor. Scientific Reports (2016).
4. Label-free biosensing with singular-phase-enhanced lateral position shift based on atomically thin plasmonic nanomaterials. Light: Science & Applications (2024).
5. Topological Darkness: How to Design a Metamaterial for Optical Biosensing with Ultrahigh Sensitivity. ACS Nano (2023).
6. SPR and SPR Imaging: Recent Trends in Developing Nanodevices for Detection and Real-Time Monitoring of Biomolecular Events. Sensors (2016).