Synthesis of ferrite particles from powder mixtures of Fe2O3, ZnO, NiO and CuO was studied using a newly designed thermal plasma reactor. This reactor can produce a plasma jet with high stability and high thermal efficiency for various operating conditions. Using this reactor, i.e. thermal plasma processing, ferrite films and particles with high purity were synthesized directly from powder mixtures under various processing conditions (jet power, chamber pressure, substrate position and processing duration time). It was also confirmed that ferrite particles with sufficient magnetization value as ferrite carriers for electrophotography were prepared and easily collected in the downstream region. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.