Optimization study of copper precursors for high quality CuInSe2 nanoparticles by wet chemical route

High-quality CuInSe₂ nanoparticles have been prepared by the solution phase synthesis procedure utilizing copper acetate or cuprous chloride as the Cu-precursor, indium chloride as the In-precursor and selenium powder as Se precursor, respectively. The synthesis process was optimized to grow 20 to 150 nm sized nanostructures of CuInSe₂, and the Cu to In ratio as well as the kind of Cu-precursor used was found to be most important in determining the structure and property of the nanostructures. The synthesized nanostructures were characterized by TEM (transmission electron microscopy), XRD (X-ray diffraction), PL (photoluminescence) and micro-Raman spectroscopy, and detailed microstructural analyses of synthesized samples were also carried out by selective area electron diffraction (SAED) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM).