Diamond films were synthesized by using radio frequency (RF) power in a capacitively coupled mode with a parallel plate electrode configuration in which direct current (DC) power was also applied simultaneously. This new plasma method is superior to plain DC plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) techniques for diamond deposition since it is very stable and seems readily scaleable. Good quality diamond films were synthesized by this modified plasma CVD method. The effect of variation of both RF and DC parameters on the deposited diamond films is discussed. ©1995 American Institute of Physics.