We have successfully demonstrated that high quality and high dielectric constant layers can be fabricated by low temperature photo-induced or -assisted processing. Ta_2O_5 and ZrO_2 have been deposited at t<400 ℃ by means of a UV photo-CVD technique and HfO_2 by photo-assisted sol-gel processing with the aid of excimer lamps. The UV annealing of as-grown layers was found to significantly improve their electrical properties. Low leakage current densities on the order of 10 -8 A/cm 2 at 1 MV/cm for deposited ultrathin Ta_2O_5 films and ca.10 -6 A/cm 2 for the photo-CVD ZrO_2 layers and photo-irradiated sol-gel HfO_2 layers have been readily achieved. The improvement in the leakage properties of these layers is attributed to the UV-generated active oxygen species O( 1D) which strongly oxidize any suboxides to form more stoichiometric oxides on removing certain defects, oxygen vacancies and impurities present in the as-prepared layers. The photo-CVD Ta_2O_5 films deposited across 10.16-cm Si wafers exhibit a high thickness uniformity with a variation of less than {±2.0%} being obtained for ultrathin ca.10 nm thick films. The lamp technology can in principle be extended to larger area wafers, providing a promising low temperature route to the fabrication of a range of high quality thin films for future ULSI technology. We have successfully demonstrated that high quality and high dielectric constant layers can be fabricated by low temperature photo-induced or -assisted processing. Ta_2O_5 and ZrO_2 have been deposited at t <400 ° C by means of a UV photo-CVD technique and HfO_2 by photo -assisted sol-gel processing with the aid of excimer lamps. The UV annealing of as-grown layers was found to significantly improve their electrical properties. Low leakage current densities on the order of 10 -8 A / cm 2 at 1 MV / cm for improvement in the leakage properties of these layers is attributed to the UV -generated active oxygen species O (1D) which strongly oxidize any suboxides to form more stoichiometric oxides on removing certain defects, oxygen vacancies and impurities present in the as-prepared layers. The photo-CVD Ta 2 O 5 films deposited acros s 10.16-cm Si wafers exhibit a high thickness uniformity with a variation of less than {± 2.0% } being for ultrathin ca.10 nm thick films. The lamp technology can in principle be extended to larger area wafers, providing a promising low temperature route to the fabrication of a range of high quality thin films for future ULSI technology.