Nanoscale Growth of CdS and PbS Semiconductor within Calix[4]Arene Langmuir-Blodgett LB Film for Ion Sensing Application

Abstract

The characteristics of cadmium sulphide (CdS) and lead sulphide (PbS) nanoparticles, grown inside Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) multilayer films of 5,11,17,23-tetra-tert-butyl-25,27-dicarboxymethoxy-26,28-dihydroxycalix [arene (I), have been studied using ellipsometry, UV-visible spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Multilayer films were formed by transferring a floating Langmuir monolayer of I onto substrates using LB deposition and water subphase containing Pb2+ or Cd2+ ions. The nanoparticles were fabricated by exposing cadmium-or lead-containing multilayer films of I (20-80 monolayers thick) to hydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas for 12 hours. By Gaussian fitting of the absorbance - energy spectra, the size of the clusters and their dispersion were found to be 1.43±0.18 nm and 1.21±0.05 nm for CdS and PbS respectively. This is the first time that such thick LB films of an amphiphilic compound possessing such high thermal stability (m.pt. ~270°C) have been used as the vehicle for the formation of CdS and PbS semiconductor particles.