A CVD ozone (O3) deposition process, with the preferred embodiment comprising the steps of disposing a substrate in a chemical vapor deposition chamber and exposing the substrate surface to a SiO2 precursor gas, a carrier gas, and optionally a dopant gas in the presence of ozone and exposing the reaction volume of the 5 gases above the substrate surface to a high intensity light source, to increase the functional atomic oxygen concentration and reduce the fixed charge in the deposited films.