Metal foils convert to metal oxide nanowires at similar to 50-300 degrees C when oxidized using weakly ionized, highly dissociated oxygen plasmas in an inductively coupled RF system (see Figure). The mechanism is believed to involve spontaneous nucleation of metal oxide nanocrystals (due to supersaturation of the subsurface layers of the foil with O-2) followed by basal attachment (due to limited mobility of the metal at low temperatures), leading to rapid nanowire growth.