Biaxially textured yttria stabilized zirconia (001) thin films were fabricated on untextured hastelloy substrates by ion beam assisted deposition method. The effects of assisting beam current density J(a) and sputtering beam current density J(s) on the textures of the films were studied. The results indicate that as J(a) or J(s) increase, both the out-of-plane and the in-plane textures are improved initially, and then degrade. The results can be attributed to anisotropic damage and selective sputtering effect of assisting ions. At the same ion-to-atom arrival ratio r, which is reflected with J(a)/J(s) value, lower deposition rate can enhance the biaxial texture. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.