Synthesis and characterization of CdS microflowers

In this manuscript, we have reported a template free fabrication of CdS microflowers by the thermal decomposition of cadmium thiocyanate complex at 300 ° C under open atmospheric condition. This synthetic methodology opens a new window for a well crystallized, single phase CdS preparation in large-scale. The formation of microflower morphology was investigated under various experimental conditions and the results imply that the decomposition temperature, co-solvents, cadmium and sulfur precursors played an important role on the formation of microflower morphology. The synthesized CdS has been characterized by using XRD, XPS, FE-SEM and HR-TEM. The XRD patterns revealed that the formation of pure wurtzite phase at all decomposition temperature and the XPS results also confirmed the formation of CdS. The FE-SEM picture indicated that the microflower morphology was self-assembled by the intact of thin nano-sheets. A plausible mechanism of CdS microflower formation has been discussed on the basis of the experimental results.