In this paper, we report on modifications in structural and optical properties of CdS thin films due to 190 keV Mn-ion implantation at 573 K. Mn-ion implantation induces disorder in the lattice, but does not lead to the formation of any secondary phase, either in the form of metallic clusters or impurity complexes. The optical band gap was found to decrease with increasing ion fluence. This is explained on the basis of band tailing due to the creation of localized energy states generated by structural disorder. Enhancement in the Raman scattering intensity has been attributed to the enhancement in the surface roughness due to increasing ion fluence. Mn-doped samples exhibit a new band in their photoluminescence spectra at 2.22 eV, which originates from the d-d ( 4 T 1 → 6 A 1 ) transition of tetrahedrally coordinated Mn 2+ ions. © 2009 Elsevier B.V.