Self-assembled highly symmetrical ZnS nanostructures and their cathodoluminescence

Here we report the synthesis and characterization of self-assembled highly symmetrical, i.e., two-fold, three-fold, four-fold and multi-fold, ZnS nanostructures through a simple thermal evaporation process. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses indicated that the ZnS nanostructures are composed of faceted crystalline ZnS nanorods with a diameter in the range of 200–600 nm and length up to 2 μm. In addition, all the branched ZnS nanorods have preferential orientation along the [0 0 2] direction of a wurtzite-type hexagonal structure. The cathodoluminescence measurement demonstrated that the ZnS nanostructures have a strong and uniform band-gap emission centered at 337 nm, indicating their good crystallinity and excellent optical property.