Synthesis, characterization and optical properties of mercury sulfides and zinc sulfides using single-source precursor

HgS and ZnS nanostructures were prepared by using two different methods. HgS nanodendrites and ZnS nanospheres were synthesized via hydrothermal decomposition of [M(TSC)2]Cl2 complex (M=Hg, Zn and TSC=thiosemicarbazide), without any surfactant. And using oleylamine (C18H37N) and TPP (C18H15P) as surfactant, HgS nanoparticles with an average diameter of approximately 20–40 nm were synthesized by thermal decomposition of the [Hg(TSC)2]Cl2, whereas the coalesced particles and bulk structures were formed by thermal decomposition of [Zn(TSC)2]Cl2. To study the crystalline structure, size, morphology and composition of the products, characterization techniques including X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy were employed. Ultraviolet visible (UV–vis) absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy exhibited optical properties of nanostructures.