Journal of Radiation Safety and Measurement

Journal of Radiation Safety and Measurement

Effect of gamma radiation on the properties of CdS thin films prepared in three different thicknesses by the CBD method

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Tavakkol Tohidi
Reza Bagheri
Mahdi Taghavi
Northwest Research Complex (Bonab), Radiation Application Research School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute (NSTRI), Tehran
10.22052/rsm.2026.256523.1111
Abstract
In this study, nanostructured CdS thin films with three different thicknesses (approximately 88, 140, and 211 nm) were prepared using the chemical bath method. The effect of gamma irradiation on their structural and optical properties was investigated. SEM images indicated that the films had a uniform surface with spherical nanoparticles and a homogeneous distribution. Gamma irradiation did not cause particle shape. XRD patterns revealed the main peak at an angle of approximately 26.7 degrees, corresponding to the cubic and hexagonal structures of CdS. With an increasing irradiation dose, the intensity of the peaks increased without altering the crystalline phase. Optical results demonstrated that absorption intensity increased and energy gap decreased with increasing thickness and gamma irradiation. Before and after irradiation, the energy gap was estimated to be in the range of 2.49-2.06 for the CdS sample with a thickness of 88.09 nm, 2.45-2.26 for the CdS sample with a thickness of 140.9 nm, and 2.41-2.22 for the CdS sample with a thickness of 211 nm. The decrease in the energy gap of the samples can be attributed to the increase in grain size and the rise in defects and dislocation levels in the material. The study also investigated the changes in the energy gap with the radiation dose.
Keywords
Thin film
nanostructure
cadmium sulfide
optical properties
gamma radiation
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