Refractory metal silicides, namely NbSi2, TaSi2, WSi2, and MoSi2, were successfully synthesized by using a metal vapor vacuum arc (MEVVA) ion source to implant the respective metal ions with high current density into Si(111) and Si(100) wafers. The implantation was conducted at room temperature with an extracted voltage of 40 kV. When the current densities of the refractory metal ions were up to 65 &mgr;A/cm2, the equilibrium hexagonal NbSi2and TaSi2phases were formed at an implantation dose of 3×1017ions/cm2, while the hexagonal WSi2and MoSi2phases were formed at a dose of 5×1017ions/cm2. With increasing the current density up to 90 &mgr;A/cm2, the transition of the hexagonal WSi2and MoSi2phases to their most stable tetragonal structures was observed. Postannealing at 750 and 950 °C resulted in the formation of the unique tetragonal WSi2and MoSi2phases, respectively. The electrical property of the MEVVA‐synthesized refractory metal silicides was measured for both as‐implanted and postannealed wafers. In addition, the formation of the refractory metal silicides by MEVVA implantation is discussed in terms of the beam heating effect caused by high current ion implantation. ©1995 American Institute of Physics.