Nanostructured ZnS obtained by a simple and low-cost chemical deposition method for clean energy thin films devices

Chemical bath deposition (CBD) is a procedure widely used in the manufacture of cadmium sulfide (CdS) thin films and other semiconductor materials. Zinc sulfide (ZnS) is a semiconductor material of interesting properties, like CdS, it can be obtained by reproducible and efficient CBD synthesis processes but is less toxic. ZnS thin films were synthesized on a glass substrate, using the CBD technique. The baths composition was adequate in terms of pH values and the sulfide ions source concentrations (thiourea, CH 4 N 2 S), for the growth of thin films of ZnS macroscopically homogeneous and well adhered to the glass substrate. It was shown that there is a direct dependence of CH 4 N 2 S concentration and pH values of 10.5 to 11 on the chemical baths, with the thicknesses of the thin films. In addition, thickness, roughness, and optical properties of the synthesized samples were studied, finding the characteristic absorption, transmittance, and energy band gap of ZnS thin films. Graphical abstract