The resistivity and the density of surface states of semiconductor nanowires are not measurable using classic electrical measurements such as capacitance-voltage techniques, because of too low capacitance associated with a single nanowire. To overcome this problem, the authors measured the resistance of a set of n- and p-doped silicon nanowires versus their length and width. Thus, the authors deduce both the resistivity and density of surface states of the nanowires. This approach could be extended to any nanowire, once its shape is known. (C) 2008 American Vacuum Society.