The deposition of 3C-SiC films on Si(100) wafers from 1,3-disilabutane precursor (1,3-DSB) molecule utilizing a conventional low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) system is studied theoretically. The LPCVD reactor is modeled as a 1D system with axial dispersion. The reaction path of the 1,3-DSB decomposition is studied through quantum chemical methods due to the lack of kinetic information on this molecule. First, the transition state for the decomposition reaction is calculated, then the fall-off regime of the reaction is determined using the Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus theory. The surface kinetics is taken-mainly from literature data. The kinetic scheme obtained in this manner is first embedded into a 0D model to evaluate the most important kinetic processes, then a simplified kinetics is adopted in the 1D model. Finally, the calculated growth rates are compared with experimental data taken at different temperatures. The agreement between calculated and experimental data shows the importance of the gas-phase decomposition reactions during the SiC deposition even in a low-pressure process. (C) 2004 The Electrochemical Society.