Barium, strontium, tantalum and lanthanum precursor compositions useful for atomic layer deposition (ALD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of titanate thin films. The precursors have the formula M(Cp).sub.2, wherein M is strontium, barium, tantalum or lanthanum, and Cp is cyclopentadienyl, of the formula (I), wherein each of R.sub.1-R.sub.5 is the same as or different from one another, with each being independently selected from among hydrogen, C.sub.1-C.sub.12 alkyl, C.sub.1-C.sub.12 amino, C.sub.6-C.sub.10 aryl, C.sub.1-C.sub.12 alkoxy, C.sub.3-C.sub.6 alkylsilyl, C.sub.2-C.sub.12 alkenyl, R.sup.1R.sup.2R.sup.3NNR.sup.3, wherein R.sup.1, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 may be the same as or different from one another and each is independently selected from hydrogen and C.sub.1-C.sub.6 alkyl, and pendant ligands including functional group(s) providing further coordination to the metal center M. The precursors of the above formula are useful to achieve uniform coating of high dielectric constant materials in the manufacture of flash memory and other microelectronic devices.