Bulk GaN of large area is difficult to synthesize. Thus, due to lack of native substrates, GaN-based structures are grown on SiC or sapphire, which results in high threading dislocation density in the active layer of the device. Fabricating GaN nanorods (NR) can be a way to produce GaN with lower defect density since threading dislocations are annihilated toward the NR wall during growth. Here, GaN(0001) NRs grown on Si(111) substrates by magnetron sputter epitaxy using a liquid Ga target have been investigated. Sputter deposition has the advantage of being easy to scale up for depositions on large surfaces. It is also possible to deposit at lower temperatures, which allows the use of substrates with lower decomposition temperature. In the second paper of this thesis, optical and structural properties of sputtered GaN NRs have been studied.