Cuprous selenide nano-crystal synthesis and characterization

Cuprous selenide nano-crystals were prepared using a heating-up process. The coordination solvent (oleylamine) dosage and whether or not dissolving the starting material prior to thermal decomposition effects on the crystalline phase and morphology of cuprous selenide nano-crystals were investigated. It was observed that nearly mono-dispersed Cu2−xSe crystallites with a size of about 20 nm and Cu/Se ratio of 1.73 can be obtained by pre-dissolving CuCl in oleylamine and Se powder in octadecene and reacting at 250 °C for 3 h.

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► Mono-dispersed Cu2−xSe of about 20 nm can be obtained using a heating-up process.
► The crystalline phase and morphology of Cu2−xSe depend on the OLA dosage.
► A new reaction mechanism for Cu2−xSe was proposed.