Anti-counterfeiting labels with controllable and anti-interference coding information based on core–shell Ag@SiO2 nanomaterials for ink printing

The core–shell structured Ag@SiO 2 nanomaterial integrated with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy promises a critical application in anti-counterfeiting. Security labels have been fabricated based on Ag@SiO 2 embedded with Raman reporters. The Ag@SiO 2 nanomaterial shows good stability and excellent anti-interference property for anti-counterfeiting. Multiple kinds of Raman probe molecules have been anchored in the Ag@SiO 2 labels to provide specific and abundant encoding information. The flexible encoding security information could be controlled conveniently by adjusting probe molecules, which not only enrich the SERS information but also improve the level of anti-counterfeiting. Furthermore, the Ag@SiO 2 shown excellent stability in organic solvent, and successfully used in ink for the anti-counterfeiting application.