In this study, diamond-like carbon (DLC) films modified with titanium were deposited by plasma decomposition of metallorganic precursor, titanium isopropoxide in CH 4 /H 2 /Ar gas atmosphere. The obtained films were composed of amorphous titanium oxide and nanocrystalline titanium carbide, embedded in an amorphous hydrogenated (a-C:H) matrix. The TiC/TiO 2 ratio in the DLC matrix was found to be dependent on the deposition parameters. The dependence of the films chemical composition on gas mixture and substrate temperature was investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, whereas the crystallinity of TiC nanoparticles and their dimension were evaluated by X-ray diffraction. The size of TiC crystallites varied from 10 to 35nm, depending on the process parameters. The intrinsic hardness of 10–13GPa, elastic modulus of 170–200GPa and hardness-to-modulus ratio of obtained coatings were measured by the nanoindentation technique. Obtained results demonstrated a correlation of mechanical properties with the chemical composition and the ratio of amorphous/crystalline phases in the films. In particular, the formation of nanocrystalline TiC with atomic concentration not exceeding 10% and with grain size between 10nm and 15nm resulted in significantly enhanced mechanical properties of composite material in comparison with ordinary DLC films.