Flower-like Cu2NiSnS4 nanoparticles synthesized by a facile solvothermal method

Abstract In this paper, flower-like Cu 2 NiSnS 4 (CNTS) nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by a facile solvothermal method for the first time. The as-synthesized CNTS nanoparticles were characterized with X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission election microscopy (TEM) and UV–vis–NIR spectroscopy. The CNTS semiconductor nanoparticles possessed pure cubic structure with size of the flowers around 400 nm in diameter. The UV–vis–NIR spectroscopy showed strong light absorption in the visible light region with band gap of 1.41 eV, suggesting its potential application in the field of thin film solar cells.