TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Method: In the method: providing the second zero-valent metal atom comprises providing a composition containing at least one first compound comprising at least one first reducible metal ion, at least one second compound comprising at least one second zero-valent metal atom, and at least one solvent; and reducing occurs in the present of at least one second zero-valent metal atom containing at least one of chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, manganese, technetium, rhenium, iron, ruthenium, osmium, cobalt, rhodium, iridium, nickel, palladium, or platinum. Preferred Components: The first compound comprises silver nitrate. The solvent comprises at least one polyol. The second compound comprises at least one metal carbonyl, metal phosphine, or metal phosphine carbonyl, preferably at least one of pentacarbonylchromium, molybdenum pentacarbonyl, tungsten pentacarbonyl, dimanganese decacarbonyl, ditechnetium decacarbonyl, dirhenium decacarbonyl, iron pentacarbonyl, ruthenium pentacarbonyl, osmium pentacarbonyl, triiron dodecarbonyl, diiron nonacarbonyl, dodecacarbonyltetracobalt, dodecacarbonyltetrarhuthenium, rhodium carbonyl (Rh5(CO)15), dodecacarbonyltetrairidium, cobalt carbonyl (Co2(CO)8), nickel tetracarbonyl, tetrakis(triphenyl-phosphine)nickel, tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium, tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)platinum, or dicarbonyltris(triphenylphosphine)ruthenium. The metal nanowire comprises an average diameter of 10-150 nm and an aspect ratio of 50-10000. EXAMPLE - Ethylene glycol (280 ml) contained in a reaction flask (500 ml), was stripped of at least some dissolved gases by bubbling nitrogen into the solution overnight using a Teflon (RTM: Polytetrafluoroethylene liner) fluoropolymer tube at room temperature with mechanical stirring at 100 rpm. Triiron dodecarbonyl (6 mg) and 91 mM diethyldichlorosilane (0.5 g) in ethylene glycol was added to the flask. Stock solutions of 0.25 M silver nitrate in ethylene glycol and 0.84 M polyvinylpyrrolidone in ethylene glycol were also degassed by bubbling nitrogen into the solutions at room temperature. Two syringes were loaded with 20 ml each of the silver nitrate and polyvinylpyrrolidone solutions. The reaction mixture was heated to 145 degrees C under nitrogen while stirring at 100 rpm. The silver nitrate and polyvinylpyrrolidone solutions were then added at a constant rate over 25 minutes via 12 gauge Teflon (RTM: PTFE liner) fluoropolymer syringe needles. The reaction mixture continued to be held at this temperature for 60 minutes after addition of these solutions, after which it was allowed to cool to ambient temperature to obtain silver nanowire product.