Un-doped and Ag-ion doped CdZnS alloy nanocrystals were synthesized using methaacrylic acid (MAA) as a capping agent. A continuous higher frequency shift in optical phonon modes was observed in the Raman spectra of the samples with increasing Zn composition demonstrating a typical 'one-mode' type behavior of the alloy material. Furthermore, the influence of MAA concentration on the optical and vibrational properties was also investigated. Transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of the samples shows that the CdZnS nanocrystals were embedded in the matrix of MAA. In addition, tremendous attention was paid towards the power induced Raman shift in the alloy nanocrystals. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.