The solvent ethanolamine with the assistance of cationic doping has been applied to synthesize alloyed multipod-branched CdxZn1-xS (0 < x < 1) nanocrystals through a simple solvothermal route. During the growth of the alloyed multipod-branched nanocrystals, for one thing, the cationic doping enlarges the energy difference between wurtzite and zinc-blende phases; for another thing, the -OH groups of ethanolamine favor the thorough alloying effects and the formation of the zinc-blende-structured seeds, while the -NH2 groups facilitate the subsequent preferential growth of the wurtzite-phased arms. The composition x of the alloyed multipod-branched CdxZn1-xS nanocrystals can be facilely tuned by Cd/Zn initial molar ratios. Furthermore, the absorption edges (corresponding to optical band gaps E-g) and the near-band-edge emission peaks are varied with the doping Cd2+ content x. It is reasonable for us to believe that ethanolamine can also be employed to fabricate other alloyed multipod-branched nanocrystals such as CdSxSe1-x, CdSexTe1-x and CdSxTe1-x, (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.