The W film was prepared on 1045 steel by magnetron sputtering, with the thickness of 2 pm, its surface and cross-section morphologies were investigated with SEM, and the phase structure was analyzed with XRD. X-ray stress determinator was utilized to measure its residual stress, and the nano-hardness and elastic modulus of the film were surveyed by nano-indentation tester. The results show that the surface of W film is very compact and smooth; the particles arranged regularly, the granularity of the thin film is about I pm. The microcracks, cavities and desquamation were not found in the film and interface, and the bonding between the W film and substrate is well. The XRD results showed that the W film had a body-centered cubic structure, the lattice constant: a = 0.316 nm, the growth preferred orientations are (110) and (220). The compressive stress (-169 MPa) was found on the surface. The average nano-hardness and elastic modulus of W film are 15.22 GPa, 176.64 GPa, respectively, and the mechanical properties of W film are well. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.