Preparation and surface modification of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) grown by the metal catalyzed solution method under normal conditions (room temperature, 1 atm) had been studied in this paper. Firstly, SiNWs using a simple solution method via electroless metal deposition (EMD) of silver under room temperature, standard pressure had been prepared. The influence of the growth parameters such as solution concentration, etching time on the SiNWs formation had been studied. Secondly, the surface modification of SiNWs with platinum and copper had been investigated. The results indicated that the SiNWs modified with Pt and Cu showed different surface morphologies. Pt modification on SiNWs presented in the form of nanoparticles, whereas Cu modification in the form of membrane. Therefore, the Pt modified SiNWs have more vast surface-to-bulk ratio than the unmodified ones, and SiNWs modified with copper nanoparticles will lead to the smaller surface-to- bulk ratio. So the platinum-modified SiNWs have a promising application in sensors' field. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.