Structural, Optical, and Magnetic Properties of CdS:Cr (Cr similar to 2 at.%) Nanobelts

Abstract

Two-dimensional Cr-doped CdS (CdS:Cr) nanobelts were prepared by a simple catalyst-free vapor phase epitaxy method. The CdS:Cr nanobelts exhibited a smooth surface and a single-crystalline wurtzite lattice phase in which the Cr dopant was uniformly distributed. The CdS:Cr nanobelts revealed a clear luminescence peak from the acceptor-bound exciton, indicating the effective incorporation of Cr ions into CdS as acceptors. Owing to the contribution of both the hole carriers and magnetic moments of the Cr ions, the CdS:Cr nanobelts displayed room-temperature ferromagnetism via the p-d exchange interaction. The results suggest that CdS:Cr nanobelts hold promise for future low-dimensional spintronic device applications