Fabrication of YSZ films deposited on NiO-samaria-doped ceria (SDC) substrate was studied by the chemical vapor infiltration method (CVI). A NiO-SDC substrate was used as oxygen source. The main mechanism of YSZ growth was electrochemical vapor deposition (EVD), while the contribution of oxygen in the carrier gas increased with increasing NiO content of the substrate above 60.6 mol%. The YSZ film on SDC used as the anode proved effective in obtaining high cell performance. In particular, a YSZ film thickness of 1 mu m yielded the highest cell performance in the temperature range from 973 to 1073 K. The CVI method was useful for preparing a dense and strong YSZ film on the complex-shaped NiO-SDC substrate. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.