Nano-structured films with the grain sized of 80-600 nm were formed on the AISI 329 stainless steel by Nd-YAG pulsed laser irradiation. The surface temperature has been estimated according to the numeral simulation of the thermal conditions. The formation process of nanocrystalline and submicron films on the stainless steel was investigated based on the experimental observation and the theoretical analysis of simulation results such as the cooling rate and the cooling duration. The phase compositions of the film determined by X-ray diffraction were either alpha-Fe (ferrite) + gamma-Fe (austenite) or only gamma-Fe, depending on the employed laser energy density. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.