TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The nanowire grows in the (111) or (0001) direction. The nanowire comprises a group III-V compound. The nanowires comprise aluminum arsenide (AlAs), zinc oxide (ZnO), gallium antimonide (GaSb), gallium phosphide (GaP), gallium nitride (GaN), gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), indium nitride (InN), indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs), indium arsenide (InAs), or aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs), such as GaSb, GaP, GaAs, or InAs. Substrate comprises III-V semiconductor, e.g. GaAs, silicon (Si) or is graphitic, such as graphene, graphane or graphene oxide, preferably where the graphene, graphane or graphene oxide comprises 10 or fewer atomic layers. The graphitic substrate and/or the graphitic layer is a laminated substrate exfoliated from a Kish graphite, a highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), chemical vapor deposition (CVD)-grown graphene layers on metallic films or foils such as nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), or platinum (Pt) films. The graphitic substrate and/or the graphitic layer are flexible and transparent. Surface of substrate and/or the graphitic layer is modified with a plasma treatment with a gas of oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), or their combinations. The surface of substrate and/or the graphitic layer is modified by doping, e.g. using a solution of iron(III) chloride (FeCl3), gold(III) chloride (AuCl3), or gallium(III) chloride (GaCl3). Surface of substrate and/or the graphitic layer is doped by adsorption of organic or inorganic molecules such as metal-chlorides (FeCl3, AuCl3 or GaCl3), NO2, nitric acid (HNO3), aromatic molecules or ammonia. The surface of substrate and/or the graphitic layer is doped by substitutional doping method during its growth with incorporation of dopants such as boron (B), nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), or Si. The substrate comprises nanowires where the nanowires are substantially parallel. The graphitic layer is graphene. It is doped with the same doping ions as the nanowires. The hole-patterned mask comprises at least one insulating material such as silicon dioxide (SiO2), silicon nitride (Si3N4), hafnium oxide (HfO2), or aluminum oxide (Al2O3), e.g. deposited by electron beam (e-beam) evaporation, CVD, plasma-enhanced (PE)-CVD, sputtering, or atomic layer deposition (ALD). Preferred Parameter: Nanowires are no more than 500 nm in diameter and has a length of up to 5 microns. Preferred Catalyst: The catalyst is gold (Au), or silver (Ag), or the nanowires are self catalyzed. Preferred Process: The substrate is coated with a hole- patterned mask, preferably where the catalyst is introduced on to the substrate surface exposed via the hole pattern. The surface of the substrate exposed through the hole pattern is modified with a plasma treatment with a gas of oxygen, hydrogen, NO2, or their combinations. The graphitic layer is subjected to a post-annealing process.