Order in CdS nanoparticles in glass

We have employed X-ray absorption spectroscopy to study the local bonding o f Cd atoms in borosilicate glasses doped with Cd and S after heat treatment at temperatures from 550 to 750 degreesC. Varying temperature and time can form CdS particles with average size from a few to several nanometers. In crystals grown below similar to 700 degreesC, the apparent number of second neighbors found from analysis of X-ray absorption fine structure is only a small fraction of that expected for well-ordered crystallites of these siz es. We attribute this apparent coordination deficit to substantial short-ra nge structural disorder. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved .