Production of a thin-film system containing at least one ultra-thin film, preferentially in the film thickness range from 1 to 10 nm, which is deposited by plasma-aided chemical or physical vapor-phase deposition using magnetron discharges. The method is characterized in that in the course of deposition of the ultra-thin film the power output is introduced into the plasma in the form of a controlled number of power pulses and that the average power output during the pulse-on time is set higher by a factor of at least 3 than the averaged power output over the entire coating time during deposition of the ultra-thin film.