Optical nanoantenna for beamed and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

Optical nanoantenna is a key component in plasmonic circuitry, which can receive or transmit an electromagnetic field in the near field of an object (nanomaterials). It has wide range of applications including surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), photocatalytic reactions, remote SERS, solar cell, plasmonic nanoscopy, and quantum plasmonics. The main challenges in optical nanoantenna research include both fundamental understanding of the underlying physics and issues related to fabrication of low cost, high throughput nanostructures beyond the diffraction limit. The nanoscale feature size of optical antennas limits our ability to design, manufacture, and characterize their resonant behavior. This review investigates the fabrication methods and SERS applications of optical nanoantenna.