This paper describes a preparation method and structural and electrochemical properties of a thin bilayer anode-electrolyte structure for a solid oxide fuel cell operating at intermediate temperatures (IT-SOFC). Thin anode-supported yttria-stabilized zirconia electrolyte films were prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering of a Zr-Y target in an Ar-O(2) atmosphere. Porous anode surfaces of IT-SOFCs were modified by a pulsed low-energy high-current electron beam prior to film deposition; the influence of this pretreatment on the performance of both the deposited films and a single cell was investigated. The optimal conditions of the pulsed electron beam pretreatment were obtained. For the electrolyte thickness about 2.5 mu m and the value of gas permeability of the anode/electrolyte structure 1.01 x 10(-7) mol m(-2) s(-1) Pa(-1), the maximum power density achieved for a single cell at 800 degrees C and 650 degrees C was found to be 620 and 220 mW cm(-2) in air, respectively. Copyright (C) 2011, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.