Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of morphine in silver colloid

We report the surface-enhanced Raman (SERS) spectra of morphine in silver colloid, and study the silver colloid enhanced effects on the Raman scattering of morphine. The Raman bands of morphine are assigned to certain molecule vibrations. The broad band in the long-wavelength region of the electronic absorption spectra of the sol with added adsorbent at certain concentrations has been explained in terms of the aggregation of the colloidal silver particles. The potential applications of SERS in quantitative measurement of the morphine samples are demonstrated. By using a proper Raman band of morphine, the detection limit of morphine in silver sol is found to be 1.5 ng/ml. The result suggests that it is of great significance to use SERS in illicit drug morphine inspection.