To realize wider potentials of silicon nanowires (SiNWs), the morphological controllability is desirable. In this paper, we synthesized well vertically-and slantingly-aligned SiNWs with ultra-high aspect ratio in metal-assisted chemical etching method, and wafer-scale zigzag SiNWs with three types of turning angle were also obtained. The formation of the curved SiNWs is a result of the alternation of moving direction of Ag nanoparticles between the preferred < 1 0 0 > and other directions in Si substrates. The as-prepared SiNWs are single-crystalline and their orientations are mostly along the < 1 0 0 > or < 1 1 1 > directions. The surface of the resulting SiNWs can be controlled to be smooth or rough, with or without mesopores, by adjusting the etching conditions and using various Si substrates with different crystal orientations and doping levels. Moreover, the effects of the etching conditions (etching time, oxidant concentration, deposition time of Ag nanoparticles and etching temperature) and substrate properties (crystal orientation and doping level) on the as-prepared SiNWs have been discussed. (C) 2012 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.