Two kinds of quasi-aligned ZnCdO nanostructures, i.e., ZnCdO nanorods and ZnCdO nanoneedles, were synthesized simultaneously by evaporating Zn and Cd powders using An as a catalyst. The synthesized ZnCdO nanorods have uniform hexagonal crystallographic planes, and their diameters are about 150 nm. The Cd content of quasi-aligned ZnCdO nanorods was as high as (about) 16.7 at%. Notably, the ultra-violet (UV) near-band-edge (NBE) emission was red-shifted from 386 nm (3.21 eV) to 408 nm (3.04 eV) due to the direct modulation of band gap caused by Zn/Cd substitution. Temperature is deemed as a critical experimental parameter for the formation of different morphologies of ZnCdO nanostructures. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.