Perovskites thin films with the composition La0.6Ca0.4MnO3 doped with 20% Fe, were prepared by pulsed reactive crossed beam laser ablation, where a synchronized reaction gas pulse interacts with the ablation plume. The films were grown on various substrates and the highest colossal magnetoresistance ratio (CMR) was detected by Hall measurements for films grown on LaA1O(3) (1 0 0), which was selected as substrate for further investigations. Several growth parameters, such as substrate temperature and target to substrate distance were varied to analyze their influence on the film properties. The structure of the deposited thin films was characterized by X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscope, while Rutherford backscattering (RBS) was used to determine the film stoichiometry. The electrical properties were determined by Hall effect measurements in a magnetic field of 0.51 T. These measurements reveal that the amplitude of the CMR ratio depends strongly on the substrate and that the oxygen content influences the temperature where the transition from semiconductor to metal is observed. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.