Recent progress in detection of mercury using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy — A review

Concerns over exposure to mercury have motivated the exploration of cost-effective,rapid,and reliable method for monitoring Hg^2＋ in the environment.Recently,surface-enhanced Raman scattering（SERS） has become a promising alternative method for Hg^2＋ analysis.SERS is a spectroscopic technique which combines modern laser spectroscopy with the optical properties of nano-sized noble metal structures,resulting in substantially increased Raman signals.When Hg^2＋ is in a close contact with metallic nanostructures,the SERS effect provides unique structural information together with ultrasensitive detection limits.This review introduces the principles and contemporary approaches of SERS-based Hg^2＋detection.In addition,the perspective and challenges are briefly discussed.