Synthesis and characterization of ZnS nanoclusters via hydrothermal processing from [bis(salicylidene)zinc(II)]

A thioglycolic acid (TGA)-assisted hydrothermal process has been developed to synthesize zinc sulfide (ZnS) nanoclusters via the reaction between a new precursor, bis(salicylaldiminato)zinc(II); [Zn(sal)(2)]; and thioacetamide (CH3CSNH2). X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) were employed to characterize the obtained product. Furthermore, the possible mechanism and the critical factors for the TGA-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of the ZnS nanoclusters have been preliminarily presented. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.