Amorphous films in the system SiO2-ZrO2 were prepared by radiofrequency sputtering method and their density, refractive index, elastic constants, and thermal expansion coefficient were measured. All of the physical properties had a similar compositional dependence; that is, they increased, but not proportionally, with increasing ZrO2 content. The coordination states of cations in these amorphous films were estimated by the compositional dependence of volume and molar refractivity. The coordination state of silicon ions in the amorphous films did not change, but the coordination number of zirconium ions changed from 8 to 6, depending on ZrO2 content. These results indicate that, in amorphous films in the system SiO2-ZrO2, the change of the coordination state of zirconium ions in the amorphous films has an important effect on the properties. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.