Thin films of chromium diboride, a "metallic ceramic" material with a melting point of 2200 degrees C, were deposited by chemical vapor deposition using a single-source precursor, the bis(octahydrotriborato)chromium(II) complex Cr(B3H8)(2) at substrate temperatures as low as 200 degrees C. The films were stoichiometric, and had electrical resistivities of 105-450 mu Omega cm for growth temperatures spanning a range of 200-400 degrees C. The film microstructure ranged from being x-ray amorphous at low growth temperatures to nanocrystalline for substrate temperatures > 500 degrees C. The growth process was highly conformal, as determined by the film coverage profile on trenches with a depth-width ratio of 7:1. (c) 2005 American Vacuum Society.