The electrical characteristics of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiated Au/n-Si (100) structure has been investigated in a wide temperature range (50-300 K). The forward bias current-voltage (I-V) measurements have been used to extract the diode parameters as a function of temperature. The Zero-bias Schottky barrier height decreases with decreasing temperature. However, the flat-band barrier height is almost independent of the temperature. These results are interpreted using the models of Fermi level pinning. The behavior of Schottky diode parameters is explained by taking into account the role of the irradiation induced defects at Au/n-Si (100) interface. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.