Yttrium silicate (Y-Si-O) films with eggshell- and fur-like microstructures were prepared by laser chemical vapor deposition using a Nd:YAG laser, and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and yttrium dipivaloylmethane (Y(dpm)(3)) precursors. Amorphous Y-Si-O films were prepared at deposition temperature below 1200 K. The crystalline Y-Si-O films with mixtures of Y-4.67(SiO4)(3)O and alpha-Y2Si2O7 phases were obtained at deposition temperature above 1200 K. y-Y2Si2O7 and X1-Y2SiO5 minor phases were also formed at a higher deposition temperature. At deposition temperature ranging between 1285 and 1355 K, a dome-like structure covered with fine fur-like projections was formed under a total pressure 01 3.5 kPa, whereas an eggshell-like structure 200-300 mu m in diameter and 10-20 mu m in shell thickness was formed at 7.5 kPa. The deposition rate for the Y-Si-O films with fur- and eggshell-like microstructures reached 300 and 1000 mu m h(-1), respectively. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.