Vertical zinc blende GaAs/AIGaAs heterostructure nanowires were grown at different temperatures by met-alorganic chemical vapor deposition xmlns="""">via Au-assisted vapor-liquid-solid mechanism. It was found that radial growth can be enhanced by increasing the growth temperature. The growth of radial heterostructure can be realized at temperature higher than 500¡ãC, while the growth temperature of axial heterostructure is lower than 440¡ãC. The room temperature photoluminescence properties of the nanowires were investigated and the relevant growth mechanism was discussed.