La1.85Sr0.15CuO4+delta thin films were deposited by dc magnetron sputtering. Relaxing time intervals were introduced in the deposition process for improving the quality of the thin films. Atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to examine the morphology and structure of the thin films. The study reveals that the time intervals inserted in the deposition process improve the morphology of the thin films, and shows that the thicker the film, the better the crystalline quality and the superconducting property for both deposition processes. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.