Lead zirconate titanate (Pb(Zr-x,Ti1-x)O-3: PZT) thin films were prepared on Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrates by hybrid processing: sot-gel method and pulsed-laser deposition (PLD). X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that the PZT films mainly had a perovskite-type structure with (1 0 0)-preferred orientation, and no peak corresponding to pyrochlore was detected. The transmission electron microscopy image showed that the films had a polycrystalline columnar microstructure extending through the thickness of the film, and no sharp interface was observed between the layers obtained by the sol-gel method and PLD. The HTEM image also revealed that the crystalline lattice of the layers was continuous and there was no difference in crystalline orientation between the layers obtained by the sol-gel method and PLD. These results indicated that the lower PZT layer deposited by the sol-gel method acted as a seed layer for the crystallization of the upper PZT layer deposited by PLD. The solid-phase epitaxial effect between the PZT layers deposited by the sol-gel method and PLD lowers the temperature of postdeposition annealing, and the preferred orientation of the PZT films can be controlled using the layer deposited by the sol-gel method. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. Ali rights reserved.