ZnO nanoclusters were prepared and deposited at room temperature using a newly developed cluster source. The nanoclusters act as a building block for the cluster films deposited on various substrates. The cluster films were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, and photoluminescence. We prepared monodispersed crystalline ZnO nanoclusters of similar to 7 nm diameter. These clusters have a significant blueshift of similar to 125 meV (compared to the results published so far) within the ultraviolet region at room temperature. No PL in our samples was observed in the visible region, which implies negligible defect formation in ZnO nanocluster films. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.