Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was analyzed using surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) to find the optimal conditions to observe BSA with SERS. Colloidal silver, Na2SO4, and BSA were mixed together at varying pHs and concentrations to obtain multiple spectra.The most favorable conditions using SERS for BSA were 500ug/mL and pH 4.The spectrum under those conditions showed the most intense and discernible peaks and the alpha helical secondary structure was very distinct at 1297 cm-1. SERS can be used for label free detection of proteins, thus finding the best conditions to obtain spectra using this technique may be very beneficial to proteomic research
