CaCu3Ti4O12 (CCTO) thin films were successfully deposited on Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si(1 0 0) substrates using pulsed-laser deposition technique. The crystalline structure and the surface morphology of the CCTO thin films were greatly affected by the substrate temperature and oxygen pressure. Thin films with a (2 2 0) preferential orientation were obtained at the substrate temperature above 700 degreesC and oxygen pressure above 13.3 Pa. The 480-nm thin films deposited under 720 degreesC and 26.6 Pa have a fairly high dielectric constant of near 2000 at 10 kHz and room temperature. The values of the dielectric constant and loss and their temperature-dependence under different frequency are comparable with those obtained in the epitaxial CCTO films grown on oxide substrates. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.