An atomic layer epitaxy technique was used to produce nanoscale 2.9-3.4 nm copper particles supported on silica, and the nanoscale Cu/SiO2 catalysts can show surprisingly high activity for the water gas shift reaction, in comparison with the 5.6 wt% Pt/SiO2 and 10.3 wt% Cu/SiO2 prepared by the impregnation method.