The production, morphology, and optical properties of HNO3 etched silv
er foil, used as an effective sensor for surface-enhanced Raman scatte
ring (SERS) analysis, are reported. These foils were found to exhibit
a strong SERS effect and excellent stability, reversibility and spectr
al response. Acridine, 9-aminoacridine and quinacrine have been taken
to illustrate the usefulness of this sensor. Simplicity, low cost, spe
ed and availability are outstanding features of this sensor, which ext
ends the applicability of the SERS technique to more practical situati
ons.