The invention provides an ultraviolet avalanche photo-detector which comprises a silicon substrate (1), a silicon-based avalanche layer (2), a buffering layer (3), a nucleating layer (4) and an absorbing layer (5) from bottom to top. Different from a conventional AlGaN material grows on sapphire or SiC substrate, the ultraviolet avalanche photo-detector is formed in the mode that the buffering layer and the nucleating layer grow on a silicon base, an AlGaN material serves as the absorbing layer, response to ultraviolet light wave bands is effectively improved, the silicon substrate is low in cost, large in single-crystal size and high in quality, and has small dark currents and low noise, and the avalanche layer is made of a silicon material and has low avalanche breakdown voltage. Ultraviolet light enters AlGaN in a normal incidence mode to excite photo-production electron-hole pairs, under action of an external electric field, a single current carrier (electrons) enters the silicon-based avalanche layer to trigger avalanche gain, an absorbing area and an avalanche area can be separated, and the ultraviolet avalanche photo-detector has low avalanche breakdown voltage, high gain, low noise and high bandwidth, and has a wide application range.