Immobilization of cadmium telluride nanoparticles on the surface of hexadecyltrimethylammonium-montmorillonite

A novel hybrid material of cadmium telluride, one of the II-VI group of semiconductors, and hexadecyltrimethylammonium-montmorillonite was prepared by the intercalation of cadmium telluride into hexadecyltrimethylammonium- montmorillonite. The resulting hybrids were characterized by X-ray diffraction, FT-IR, HRTEM, TG-DTA, UV-visible and photoluminescence spectroscopies. The size and size distribution of cadmium telluride were stabilized by hexadecyltrimethylammonium-montmorillonite, which can greatly affect the optical properties. High resolution transmission electron micrographs showed that cadmium telluride particles with the diameter of 1.30-2.50 nm were well-separated and uniformly distributed in the interlayer spaces of hexadecyltrimethylammonium-montmorillonite.