Objective To study the influences of hot-filament chemical vapor deposition technology on the growth of diamond thin films, and determine the influencing factors of diamond thin film growth. Methods The diamond thin films were deposited on different oriented Si substrates using acetone as the carbon source by hot filament chemical vapor deposition, and the growth characteristics were analyzed by metallographic microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Results Surface morphology differed greatly for diamond films grown at different deposition temperatures. High-quality (111)-orientation diamond films were achieved at low carbon concentration, and high-quality (400)-orientation diamond films were achieved at high carbon concentration. Efficiency of film growth was improved by the intermittent deposition method. Conclusion Gas source concentration and growth temperature were the important factors influencing the growth of diamond films, and intermittent deposition method had a relatively great effect on the growth of diamond films.