Deposition of nanostructured films of CdSe and CdS using three layered water–oil–amphiphile/salt system

Abstract

A three phase system formed by water, decane and amphiphile 2-butoxyethanol has been used to grow deposits of CdSe and CdS. Nanostructured thin films are obtained at the upper interface of the ternary system, between the emulsive middle layer and the oil rich top phase. The influence of the deposition conditions such as precursor concentrations and temperature; as well as the nature of the medium on the properties of the deposits is studied. Deposits grown using the ternary system are compared with those obtained using the binary water–decane and water–toluene system. The thin film deposits were characterized by scanning and transmission electron microscopy as well as absorption spectroscopy.