Colloidal suspensions of PbTe nanoparticles coated with oleic acid (OA) were obtained using a high-temperature solution phase (HTSP) meth- od. Both diphenyl ether and squalane were used as high-boiling heat-transfer agents. It was shown that the change in standard synthesis conditions, such as the temperature of reaction and the group IV/group VI precursor molar ra- tio, led to precipitation of the nanocrystalline tellurium in parallel with PbTe nanoparticles. Bonding between the oleic acid and nanoparticles (NP) was in- vestigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray pho- toelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results indicated that oleic acid coordinated the nanoparticles symmetrically through carboxyl groups, and the interaction modes were bridging bidentate and chelating interactions. The strong coordi- nation by the capping monolayer made the NP stable against oxidation. In contrast to bulk, nanocrystalline PbTe possesses photosensitivity to IR radia- tion at low temperatures enabling electrical conductivity, which itself has an activation character with rising temperature.