The photon-sensing abilities of SnO2 nanowires have been investigated before and after surface fluorination by microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The electrical conductance and photon-sensing abilities of SnO2 nanowires were remarkably improved by an effective doping of fluorine into the surface of the nanowires. These results demonstrated that the fluorinated SnO2 nanowires have potential applications as UV photodetectors with high photon-sensing properties. (C) 2009 The Electrochemical Society. [DOI:10.1149/1.3223984] All rights reserved.