In 1974 it was discovered that pyridine molecules that were absorbed unto a electrochemically roughen surface yield many times more intense Raman Signals than they normally would. This effect was later named Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS).

The theoretical understanding of SERS is not clear but the technique has found application in many areas of physics, chemistry and biology, yielding information on how molecules interact with surfaces whilst allowing detection of very low concentrations of various analytes.