Structure of CdS–arachidic acid composite LB multilayers

Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) multilayers of cadmium arachidate were used as precursors to grow semiconducting CdS nanoclusters. The formation of CdS in the multilayers was determined by Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR), ultraviolet–visible (UV–vis) and Raman spectroscopy. The structural changes occurring as a consequence of CdS formation have been characterized using X-ray reflection (XR) and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXD) techniques. The CdS containing composite multilayers exhibit the presence of two types of molecular domains, one with close packed herringbone arrangement and the other with tilted molecular chains with no in-plane order. The structural and spectroscopic evidences together suggest that the CdS nanoclusters formed within the arachidic acid LB matrix are quasi two-dimensional in nature with lateral dimension 5–10 nm and thickness 1.1 nm.