Morphological control of cadmium sulfide nanostructures by electrophoretic deposition

Abstract Thin films and one-dimensional CdS nanostructures were formed by electrophoretic deposition of nanoparticles with morphological control. Particles less than 10 nm in diameter were prepared by a microwave assisted synthesis using trisodium citrate as capping agent. The particles were characterized by UV–Vis spectrophotometry, dynamic light scattering, and X-ray diffraction. Nanoparticles in the resulting aqueous dispersion were electrodeposited without any further treatment on aluminum plates. The nanostructures consisted of thin films with surface roughness being tuned with the applied voltage. One-dimensional nanostructures were formed by varying the applied voltage and by changing the molar ratio of the precursors in the nanocrystal synthesis. These results illustrate two different mechanisms of electrophoretic deposition that lead to the formation of different nanostructures.