Vertically-aligned CdTe nanowire (NWs) were grown for the first time by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy, using diisopropyl-telluride and dimethylcadmium as precursors, and Au nanoparticles as metal catalysts. The NWs were grown between 485 and 515 °C on (111)B-GaAs substrates, the latter overgrown with a 2-μm thick CdTe epilayer. To favor the Au-catalyst assisted process against planar deposition of CdTe, an alternate precursors flow process was adopted during NW self-assembly. Field emission electron microscopy observations and X-ray energy dispersive analyses of CdTe NWs revealed the presence of Au-rich droplets at their tips, the contact-angle between Au-droplets and NWs being ~130°. The NW height increases exponentially with the growth temperature, indicating that the Au-catalyzed process is kinetics-limited (activation energy: ~57 kcal/mol), but no tapering is observed. Low …