Electron cyclotron resonance plasmas with SiH4/O-2/Ar mixtures were used for deposition of thin films of silicon oxide, to be employed as sacrificial layers in microelectromechanical system (MEMS) fabrication. The grown films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared and ellipsometry. Optical emission spectroscopy and Langmuir probe were used for plasma characterization. It has been shown that OH molecules generated in the plasma play an important role in formation of films suitable as sacrificial layers for MEMS fabrication. Extremely high etch rates of grown oxide films (up to 10 mu m/min) were obtained, allowing fabrication of high quality poly-Si suspended structures. (c) 2007 American Vacuum Society.