Luminescent nanoparticles of Mn doped ZnS passivated with sodium hexametaphosphate

We report the synthesis of luminescent nanoparticles of manganese doped zinc sulfide (ZnS:Mn2+) with an emission peak at around 590 nm. Nanoparticles of ZnS:Mn2+ are prepared by a co-precipitation reaction from homogenous solutions of zinc and manganese salts. Based on Ostwald ripening and surface passivation, we discuss a mechanism for the formation of ZnS:Mn2+ nanoparticles. The reaction proceeds with the nucleation of ZnS crystals, which are immediately passivated by the anions in the solution. This in turn attracts cations including zinc and manganese which contribute to the growth of the crystal. These nanoparticles are sterically stabilized using polyphosphates of sodium namely sodium tripolyphosphate (STTP) and sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP). The nanoparticles consist of particles of 60–80 nm in diameter, each containing primary crystallites that was estimated from the X-ray diffraction patterns to be at around 2.2 nm.