Low-temperature synthesis of nearly monodisperse ZnS nanospheres using a facile solution-phase approach

This paper describes a facile and controllable solution-phase process for the preparation of nearly monodisperse ZnS nanospheres, with an average diameter of 150 nm, at a low temperature (80 degrees C). Thiourea is used both as a sulfur source and as a capping ligand which can direct initially formed ZnS particles to aggregate into nanospheres. The average diameter of ZnS nanospheres could be readily controlled by varying the reaction time. On the basis of the results of different reaction times and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrum analysis, a possible aggregation mechanism to form ZnS nanospheres is proposed. The UV-vis absorption spectra of the obtained ZnS nanospheres exhibits an obvious blue shift due to the quantum confinement effect.