A novel method for the fabrication of Si nanocrystals in an amorphous SiO 2 matrix by ion implantation is reported. Transmission electron microscopy indicates the formation and growth of Si nanocrystals on annealing at 1100°C which were not observed before annealing. After annealing, a photoluminescence band around 1.7 eV is observed. The shape of the emission spectrum of the photoluminescence is found to be independent of annealing time, while the intensity of the luminescence increases and then decreases as the annealing time increases. We also show direct evidence of widening of the band-gap energy of a few nanometer-sized Si particles by employing photoacoustic spectroscopy. These results indicate that the photons are absorbed by Si nanocrystals, for which the band-gap energy is modified by the quantum confinement effects, and the emission is not simply due to direct electron-hole recombination inside Si nanocrystals but is related to defects probably at the interface between Si nanocrystals and SiO 2.