Abstract: The invention relates to nanowires which consist of or comprise semiconductor materials and are used for applications in photovoltaics and electronics and to a method for the production thereof. The nanowires are characterized in that they are obtained by a novel method using novel precursors. The precursors represent compounds, or mixtures of compounds, each having at least one direct Si—Si and/or Ge—Si and/or Ge—Ge bond, the substituents of which consist of halogen and/or hydrogen, and in the composition of which the atomic ratio of substituent:metalloid atoms is at least 1:1.