TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ELECTRONICS - Preferred Components: The semiconducting nanowire extends approximately 10 nm-5 microns or 30-200 microns past the outer surface of the porous coating layer. The semiconducting nanowires are spaced at approximately 10-100 or approximately 100-500 nm center to center. The semiconducting nanowires have a density of approximately 108-1012/cm2. The thickness of the porous coating is approximately 50-500 nm or approximately 500 nm-50 microns. The first conductor has an outer cross sectional dimension of less than approximately 10 mm (preferably approximately 10 microns).Preferred Method: The anodization step is comprised of inducing a uniform electric field around the axial cross sectional periphery of the conductor. The growing step is further comprised of depositing a catalytic seed approximately at the surface of the conductor within the pores of the porous oxide by using the conductor as an electrode; or is further comprised of a catalysis using gold or aluminum as the catalyst. The catalytic reaction occurs in an ambient pressure of 1-13 Torr. The removal step results in terminating the silicon bonds with an element excluding oxygen.Preferred Properties: The semiconducting nanowires have a low band-gap, i.e. less than approximately 2 (preferably less than approximately 1) electron-volts. The silicon nanowires have a spectral absorption of greater than approximately 50% for radiation wavelengths of approximately 450-2500 nm. There is no oxide layer between the semiconducting nanowire and the semiconducting polymer. There is no barrier layer between the bottom of the pores and the surface of the first conductor.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Materials: The semiconducting nanowire is comprised of silicon. The catalytic seeds are gold, tin, aluminum, copper, platinum, palladium, nickel or gallium. The porous coating is aluminum oxide, titania, silica, zinc oxide, zirconium oxide, lanthanum oxide, niobium oxide, tungsten oxide, tin oxide, indium oxide, indium tin oxide, strontium oxide, vanadium oxide or molybdenum oxide. The semiconducting nanowires are made of germanium (Ge), gallium antimonide (GaSb), gallium nitride (GaN), gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs), indium GaSb (InGaSb), indium gallium arsenic antimonide (InGaAsSb) or gallium indium nitrogen arsenide (GaInNAs). The second conducting layer is indium tin oxide. The first conductor is aluminum.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Materials: The dopant is dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid, camphor-sulfonic acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, arsenic trifluoride, iodine gas, or CN.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - POLYMERS - Preferred Materials: The semiconducting polymer is polyacetylene, polythiophene, poly (3-alkyl) thiophene, polypyrrole, polyisothiaphthene, polyetheltene dioxythiophene, polyparaphenelyne vinylene, poly (2,5 dialkoxy) paraphenylene, polyparaphenylene, polyparaphenylene sulfide, polyheptadiyne or poly 3 -hexylthiophene poly(1,4-phenylene vinylene), poly(pyrrole), or polyacetylene. The semiconducting polymer is doped to have a complementary charge carrying property relative to the semiconducting nanowires. It is polyanaline. The second conducting layer is Invisicon (RTM: coating consisting of carbon nanotubes bound in a polymer).