We have developed low temperature and large area nanocrystalline-diamond growth methods using microwave plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition sustained by surface waves. Highly transparent and smooth nanocrystalline-diamond films were successfully grown on borosilicate glass, aluminum and other substrate materials by this method. Properties of our films were examined by using UV-excited Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and other techniques. Possible applications of our nanocrystalline-diamond films are discussed.