Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin films have been deposited using the stacked elemental layer (SEL) technique. This process consists of sequentially depositing tellurium and cadmium layers and then annealing the stacks in order to synthesize the compound. The films were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical transmittance and reflectance, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The evolution of the thin film reaction and compound formation were studied using X-ray data. The results show that the growth is diffusion-controlled and the activation energy is (82±2) kJ/mol. The effect of the conventional post-synthesis CdCl2 heat treatment on the physical properties of the films produced is also reported.