Highly sensitive plasmonic metal nanoparticle-based sensors for the detection of organophosphorus pesticides.

Plasmonic nanoparticles offer attractive benefits for the detection of environmental contaminants due to their high extinction coefficients and unique optical properties. Excess use of OP pesticides has been found to have adverse effects on human health and the environment. Here, we demonstrate the use of plasmonic silver (Ag), gold (Au) and bimetallic silver-gold (Ag-Au) nanoparticles (NPs) to detect and distinguish between organophosphorus (OP) pesticides.