The family of I-VI semiconductor materials have garnered considerable attention as their opto-electronic properties and low toxicity make them attractive alternatives to Cd- and Pb-semiconductor based applications. Out of the I-VI family, the Cu and Ag sulfides have been extensively investigated and their synthesis and properties are well documented. In contrast, there have only been a few reports on the synthesis and characterization of gold (I) sulfide (Au2S). The direct synthesis of Au2S with suitable control over size and shape remains a challenge. Further, the metastable nature of the material once synthesized is a significant obstacle to the study of Au2S, resulting in discrepancies on the properties reported. Here in, we report on the indirect synthesis of Au2S via cation exchange from copper sulfide seeds. Both, Cu2-XS (djurleite) and CuS (covellite), have been employed as starting point for the cation exchange. The cation exchange has been achieved in nanodisks and nanorods morphologies, resulting in Au2S nanostructures that preserve the size and shape of the starting materials as determined by TEM. The conversion from copper sulfide to Au2S was confirmed by XRD and Raman spectroscopy. Optical characterization was performed by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy.

Gold (I) sulfide nanostructures obtained via cation exchange of copper sulfides

254th National Meeting (2017)

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