Synthesis and optical characterization of ZnS and ZnS:Mn nanocrystalline thin films by chemical route

Nanocrystalline undoped and Mn doped zinc sulphide (ZnS) thin films were synthesized by a wet chemical route without using any capping agent. The x-ray diffraction pattern showed the typical interplanar spacings corresponding to the cubic phase of ZnS. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies confirmed the nanocrystalline nature with an average particle size similar to 3.6 nm. Compositional information was obtained from the energy dispersive x-ray studies. A UV-visible optical spectroscopy study was carried out to determine the bandgap of the nanocrystalline ZnS and it showed a blue-shift with respect to the bulk value. Variation of bandgap energies with annealing temperature was also studied in detail. A photoluminescence (PL) study of the ZnS and ZnS:Mn films at room temperature (300 K) indicated a strong luminescence band at energy 2.07 eV.