A new solvothermal route for the preparation of nanocrystals of PbS and PbSe, involving the reaction of lead stearate with sulfur or selenium and tetralin (tetrahydronaphthalene) in toluene solvent is described. Tetralin in the presence of S/Se gives H2S/H2Se and gets aromatized to naphthalene. The nanocrystals have been characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. Use of surfactant Triton X-100 (polyoxyethylene(10)isooctylphenyl ether) resulted in both nanorods and nanoparticles of PbSe. Capping by citric acid and malonic acid reduce the particle sizes to less than 10 nm. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.