In the present work p -type (1 0 0) oriented silicon wafers were used to form porous structures by electrochemical anodization method. Electrochemically etched porous silicon (PS) samples were exposed to an HCl solution for set time intervals, resulting in a stable and enhanced luminescence from this material. SEM, EDAX , XRD, FTIR and PL studies were carried out to understand the role of HCl on the PS substrates. Scanning electron micrographs demonstrate the profound change that accompanies the HCl treatment of the PS surface. The porosity of the PS was determined using the SEM images by geometric method. Effective medium approximation method reveals that the refractive index decreases with porosity. When the samples are anodized with HCl content in the electrolyte; there is a net decrease in the concentration of the Si -H groups on the material surface. Strong visible emission peak at 498 nm, with no apparent shift with respect to variation in etching parameter, is observed in photoluminescence study.