Surface plasmons have been used to enhance the surface sensitivity of several spectroscopic measurements including fluorescence, Raman scattering, and second-harmonic generation. In their simplest form, SPR reflectivity measurements can be used to detect molecular adsorption, such as polymers, DNA or proteins, etc. Technically, it is common to measure the angle of minimum reflection (angle of maximum absorption). This angle changes in the order of 0.1° during thin (about nm thickness) film adsorption. (See also the Examples.) In other cases the changes in the absorption wavelength is followed. The mechanism of detection is based on the adsorbing molecules causing changes in the local index of refraction, changing the resonance conditions of the surface plasmon waves. The same principle is exploited in the recently developed competitive platform based on loss-less dielectric multilayers (DBR), supporting surface electromagnetic waves with sharper resonances (Bloch surface waves).
If the surface is patterned with different biopolymers, using adequate optics and imaging sensors (i.e. a camera), the technique can be extended to surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRI). This method provides a high contrast of the images based on the adsorbed amount of molecules, somewhat similar to Brewster angle microscopy (this latter is most commonly used together with a Langmuir–Blodgett trough).
For nanoparticles, localized surface plasmon oscillations can give rise to the intense colors of suspensions or sols containing the nanoparticles. Nanoparticles or nanowires of noble metals exhibit strong absorption bands in the ultraviolet–visible light regime that are not present in the bulk metal. This extraordinary absorption increase has been exploited to increase light absorption in photovoltaic cells by depositing metal nanoparticles on the cell surface. The energy (color) of this absorption differs when the light is polarized along or perpendicular to the nanowire. Shifts in this resonance due to changes in the local index of refraction upon adsorption to the nanoparticles can also be used to detect biopolymers such as DNA or proteins. 
Related complementary techniques include plasmon waveguide resonance, QCM, extraordinary optical transmission, and dual-polarization interferometry.