Microcavity enhancement of low-frequency Raman scattering from a CsPbI₃ thin film

Low-frequency Raman (LFR) spectroscopy is a powerful, nondestructive method used for chemical and structural characterization of materials. Typically, the signal intensity of LFR is relatively low, resulting significantly longer signal acquisition duration. Here, we show a photonic structure based on a planar optical microcavity consists of two distributed Bragg reflectors that is capable of enhancing the LFR signal of the material placed in between the mirrors. CsPbI₃ forms smooth and uniform thin films and has distinct LFR signatures; thus, we chose to use it for investigating the microcavity enhancement capabilities. By compromising the quality factor of the cavity, we achieved a broader transmission peak and essentially earned enhancement from the double-resonance effect. Measurements on a CsPbI₃ thin film inside a cavity compared with a bare film spin coated on glass demonstrated two orders of magnitude enhancement. In addition, we fabricated the microcavity with a gradient in the resonance wavelength, in order to study the tuning effect on spectral features and on the enhancement factor. Our results show that microcavity is a promising device for enhancing LFR scattering signal and for sensitive characterization of nanomaterials.