Gold (Au) film was deposited on glass cover slips (24 mm × 24 mm × 0.1 mm, Menzel-Glaser, Braunscheig, Germany). The glass slip was cleaned prior to the deposition process. Typically, the slip underwent ultra-sonication in 50% solution of acetone for 5 min followed by rinsing in concentrated acetone and deionised water. This is to remove dirt and any trace of impurities on the surface of the glass slide before any coating process. The glass slide was then coated with a thin film of gold layer using a sputter coater (model SC7640, Quorum Technologies, Newhaven, East Sussex, UK) at 20 mA for 67 s based on previous experience [23 (link)]. The gold-coated substrate was then stored in EKB-103 storage box. Subsequently, the thin film of the ternary composites was deposited on top of the gold-coated substrate by preparing 15 mg/mL solution in 1-Methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP). The deposition was conducted using POLOS™ spin coater at 6000 rpm for 30 s. The Au-coated glass substrate with the thin film of the ternary composite deposited on it was then kept in an oven at 40 °C for 1 h to allow the solvent to evaporate.
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