1. A method for the identification of an analyte comprising: (a) providing a light scanning source which produces light over an analytical wavelength range; (b) providing at least two substantially spherical identifiable particles; (c) applying at least one capture probe to the particles of (b) which binds to the surface of the particle, the at least one capture probe having affinity for at least one analyte; (d) scanning each particle of (c) one or more times over a first analytical wavelength range to produce at least one first reference resonant light scattering signature for each particle of (c), said first resonant light scattering signature uniquely identifying each particle; (e) correlating the at least one capture probe with each identified particle of (d); (f) contacting the particle of (e) with a sample suspected of containing at least one analyte where, if the analyte is present in said sample, binding occurs between the at least one capture probe and the at least one analyte; (g) scanning the particles of (f), one or more times over a second analytical wavelength range to produce at least one second binding resonant light scattering signature for each particle of (f), wherein: 1) the at least one first reference and at least one second binding resonant light scattering signatures may be the same or different; and 2) the at least first and second analytical wavelength ranges may be the same or different; (h) detecting binding of the at least one analyte to the at least one capture probe by comparing the differences between the resonant light scattering signatures selected from the group consisting of: any of the at least one first reference light scattering signature and any of the at least one second light scattering signature; and (i) identifying one or more bound analytes on the basis of the correlation made in step (e) and the at least one second binding resonant light scattering signature.