Arrays of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with characteristic transverse nanowire size of the order of 100 nm were fabricated by metal‐assisted chemical etching of monocrystalline silicon wafers followed by thermo‐diffusional doping with boron and studied by means of Raman spectroscopy considering the Fano effect related to the free charge carriers (holes) in SiNWs. The hole concentration of the order of 1020 cm−3 was shown to be achieved for SiNWs annealed at 950–1000°C and the peak intensity of Raman scattering of SiNWs dropped exponentially with the increasing free‐hole concentration. The obtained results can be used for the express diagnostics of the electrical properties of silicon nanostructures for applications in optoelectronics, sensorics, and thermoelectric devices.

Free charge carrier concentration in arrays of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with cross-sectional size of the order of 100[Formula: see text]nm was quantitatively studied by means of the infrared spectroscopy in an attenuated total reflection mode. SiNWs were formed on lightly-doped [Formula: see text]-type crystalline silicon substrates by metal-assisted chemical etching followed by additional doping through thermoactivated diffusion of boron at 900–1000∘C. The latter process was found to increase the concentration of free holes in SiNWs up to [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]cm[Formula: see text]. Potential applications of highly doped SiNWs in thermoelectric energy converters and infrared plasmonic devices are discussed.

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We report on the effect of phosphorus doping of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) on the photoinduced heating processes. SiNWs samples were prepared by metal-assisted chemical etching of low boron-doped crystalline silicon (c-Si) wafers followed with thermo-diffusional doping with phosphorous (P) up to 1020 cm-3. We establish that the P-doping (n-type) results in effective heat conduction along SiNWs toward the c-Si substrate during laser heating. Partial phase transition in P-doped SiNWs under intense photoheating was detected by means of Raman spectroscopy and photoluminescence. The observed doping effects were explained by a contribution of charge carriers (electrons) to the heat distribution along SiNWs and partial screening of the crystal lattice potential. The obtained results can be useful for the development of new photonic and optoelectronic devices based on SiNWs.