PREPARATION OF A NOVEL CDS NANOCLUSTER MATERIAL FROM A THIOPHENOLATE-CAPPED CDS CLUSTER BY CHEMICAL REMOVAL OF SPH- LIGANDS

Oxidation of the surface-capping SPh- ligands of the CdS cluster [S4Cd 10(SPh)(16)](4-) in solution has been explored as a route to the-synth esis of larger, well defined nanocrystals of CdS. Iodine was found to oxidise and remove the SPh- ligands and effect the growth of a CdS clu ster with a sharp UV-VIS absorption peak at 371 mm. Electrospray mass spectra indicate that the first step in the transformation involves th e loss of the four [Cd(SPh)(4)] units at the cluster corners. Characte risation by FTIR; and UV-VIS spectroscopy and X-ray powder diffraction showed that the material consists of iodide-capped clusters of approx imately 15 Angstrom diameter. The isolated material redissolved in DMF where its emission spectrum showed a strong broad band at 510 nm.