We report on the successful synthesis of CdSe nanoparticles (NPs) via a facile aqueous approach. Investigation on the effects of various cadmium sources in the precursor solution on the CdSe NPs is discussed. The structural and morphological properties characterized by the X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) displayed good features of the as‐prepared CdSe NPs. The XRD pattern displayed a pure zinc blende crystal structure for all samples, with the most crystalline sample observed for CdSe NPs prepared using anhydrous cadmium chloride. The estimated crystallite sizes were below 6 nm for all the CdSe NPs samples. Mixed shapes of spherical and nanorods of varying sizes were observed from the SEM images for the as‐prepared NPs prepared using different cadmium sources. The optical studies conducted by photo‐spectroscopy pointed out the CdSe NPs prepared using anhydrous cadmium chloride gave the best optical properties. The emission wavelengths were in the range 565 to 574 nm while the optical band gaps were in the range 2.94 to 3.23 eV for all the as‐prepared CdSe NPs samples. All the samples, however, displayed quantum confinement effects giving room for further fabrication and engineering to suit specific applications in the biological field. The obtained results demonstrated that aqueous phase synthetic route employed in this study could be successfully adopted for production of high‐quality CdSe NPs because of its facile and inexpensive nature.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.