Poly(zinc 1,6-hexanedithiolate) thin film, a precursor to prepare ZnS thin film, was self-assembled on a quartz substrate. The UV-vis spectra monitored the annealing process of the poly(zinc 1,6-hexanedithiolate) film, which revealed that the ZnS thin film began to form at approximately 515 K. The result of XRD confirmed the crystallinity of ZnS. With increase of annealing temperature, a red shift of the emission spectra was observed. (c) 2005 Published by Elsevier B.V.