Optical and photoconductive properties of transparent SnO2 nanofibers, made from C22H44O4Sn via electrospinning and metallorganic decomposition, were investigated using Fourier transform infrared and ultraviolet (UV)/visible spectrometry and the two-probe method. Their optical bandgap was determined from their UV absorption edge to be 3.95-4.08 eV. Their conductance responds strongly to UV light for a wavelength of 254 nm: in air its steady-state on-to-off ratios are 1.31-1.56 (rise) and 1.25-1.33 (fall); its 90% rise and fall times are 76-96 and 71-111 s, respectively. In a vacuum of about 10(-4) torr, its on-to-off ratios are higher than 35.6 (rise) and 3.4 (fall), respectively, and its 90% rise and fall times are longer than 3x10(4) s. (C) 2007 American Institute of Physics.