The results of an investigation of the effects of temperature, during both theinsituargon sputter clean and the deposition, on the electrical properties of low‐temperature (Tdep≤800 °C) expitaxial silicon films are presented. The data indicate that the electrical quality does not depend on the sputter temperature, at least for temperatures in the 750–800 °C temperature range. The electrical quality is a strong function of the deposition temperature, however. Epitaxial layers deposited at 800 °C have electrical characteristics comparable or superior to bulk silicon. However, reducing the deposition temperature to 750 °C results in a significant degradation in the film electrical properties. The electrical quality is stable to further annealing for temperatures in the 750–950 °C range. The mechanism responsible for the dependence of the film electrical quality on the deposition temperature is described.