The effects of thermionic sputtering parameters on crystalline orientation and coercive force of magnetic films are discussed in this paper. By controlling the crystalline orientation within the film it is possible to produce films with a coercive‐force range from 0.9 Oe to 35.8 Oe. The crystalline orientation is controlled by the magnetic field, the electric field, and the substrate position within the apparatus. All of the films were prepared on substrates which were not exposed to the sputtered material until the target had the adsorbed gases removed.The texture of the films is described by means of several x‐ray photographs taken on a specially designed Laue camera, capable of giving a pattern from films as thin as 100 Å.