Raman Spectroscopy in Nanomedicine: Current Status and Future Perspectives

Raman spectroscopy is a branch of vibration spectroscopy which is capable of probing the chemical composition of materials. Recent advances in Raman microscopy have added significantly to the range of applications which now extend from medical diagnostics to exploring interfaces between biological organisms and nanomaterials. In this review, Raman is introduced in a general context, highlighting some of the areas in which the technique has found success in the past, as well as some of the potential benefits it offers over other analytical modalities. The subset of Raman techniques which specifically probe the nanoscale, namely Surface Enhanced and Tip Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy, will be described and specific applications relevant to nanomedical applications will be reviewed. Progress in the use of traditional label-free Raman applied to investigation of nanoscale interactions will be described, and recent developments in Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering will be explored, particularly applications to biomedical and nanomedical fields