Silicide/SiGe-based tube structures have been fabricated onto silicon by precise transformation from two-dimensional structures to three-dimensional objects. By using the strain in a pair of lattice-mismatched epitaxy layers, a method was developed to create the tube structure by their release from a substrate. The tube structures combining semiconductor (Site) and metallic silicide (NiSi2) may find applications in advanced devices. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.