Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG), Y3Fe5O12, is an oxide material that has potential applications in the magneto-optical recording media and microwave device industries. These materials, when synthesized in thin film form, usually require post-deposition annealing in order to enhance their physical properties. Furthermore, integration of YIG based optical components requires the synthesis of high quality YIG material on quartz, a process that may be problematic due to poor adhesion and lattice mismatch. Thus, we have conducted a study on the effect of deposition temperature (from 25 to 800 degrees C) and post-deposition annealing (at 740 degrees C) on the crystalline quality and chemical composition of YIG thin films, grown by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering, on quartz substrates. X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows that as-grown layers are amorphous, and subsequent annealing is necessary to induce film crystallization. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry analyses were also conducted and the chemical composition of the films was found to depend on initial deposition temperature and is affected by post-deposition anneals. Comparison of the XRD and RBS results point out to the existence of an optimal deposition temperature at about 700 degrees C for the formation of high crystalline quality and stoichiometric YIG thin films. Magnetic measurements were found to correlate to the XRD and RBS analyses. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.