Synthesis of spherical ZnS based nanocrystals using thioglycolic assisted hydrothermal method

Abstract

In this paper, we report a facile hydrothermal method for the preparation of spherical ZnS based nanocrystals (flower-like architectures), using Zn(acac)₂ and thioacetamide (TAA) as the Zn²⁺ and sulfur sources and thioglycolic acid (TGA) as the capping agent. The influence of temperature and polyethylene glycol (PEG), as a surfactant, on the morphology of the products was investigated. The flower-like ZnS were produced from self-assembly of nanoparticles with diameters of 40 ± 5 nm. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SEAD), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra. The influence of temperature and surfactant (polyethylene glycol) on the morphology of the products was investigated. The possible formation mechanism and optical properties of these architectures were also reported.