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Ta films with tetragonal crystalline structure (h-phase), deposited by magnetron sputtering on different substrates (steel, silicon, and silicon dioxide), have been studied. In all cases, very highly preferred (001) orientation was observed in X-ray diffraction measurements. All diffraction data revealed two weak reflections corresponding to d-spacing of 0.5272 and 0.1777 nm. The presence of the two peaks, attributed to (001) and (003) reflections, indicates that h-Ta films exhibit a high preference for the space group of P-42 1 m over P4 2 /mnm, previously proposed for h-Ta. Differences in relative intensities of (00l) reflections, calculated for single crystal h-Ta j-type Frank-Kasper structure and those measured in the films, are attributed to defects in the films. Molecular dynamics simulations performed on tantalum clusters with six different initial configurations using the embedded-atom-method potential revealed the stability of h-Ta, which might explain its growth on many substrates under various deposition conditions. D

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