AbstractThe resistivity of ZnO nanowires grown by pulsed laser deposition is found to decrease by more than two orders of magnitude to 10–1 Ω cm upon doping with aluminum in the 0.6 at% range. The growth morphology of the straight nanowires with hexagonal cross‐section and small tapering angle, typically below 0.5°, is similar for doped and undoped nanowires. Ohmic contacts to single nanowires were prepared by electron‐beam lithography. For a set of nanowires (diameter: 110–260 nm, length: 0.6–8 μm), the resistivity is found to be independent of length and diameter. This confirms the homogeneous electrical properties of the ZnO:Al nanowires in the given size regime. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)