Spectral shifts in metal-enhanced fluorescence

We report a 2 nm red shift in the fluorescence spectra observed for Rhodamine 800 dissolved in glycerol on copper substrates as compared to glass reference samples, suggesting a wavelength dependence of metal enhanced fluorescence. The full width half maximum of the blue-red spectra is about 1 nm narrower as compared to the reference sample. We speculate that the observation correlates with a specific interaction mechanism between the Rhodamine 800 transition dipole, the enhanced electric field, and subsequent plasmon coupling, an observation not yet reported. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.