ZnO nanocrystals were prepared by the thermolysis of Zn-surfactant complexes. The particle sizes of the nanocrystals were from 15 to 25 nm. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy. The synthesized ZnO nanocrystals have a hexagonal wurtzite structure. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.