A general approach to generate dense nanostructure on various substrates has been investigated in this paper. During this process, so called pulsed laser induced confined vapor deposition (PLCVD), a pulsed laser irradiation with a transparent confinement was applied to various surfaces, such as gold thin film on silicon wafer, AA6061 alloy and silicon wafer. When a 20 nm thick Au film was irradiated by 3 kHz pulsed laser, a short-range ordered thin layer of nanoparticles with average diameter of 9.0 +/- 3.5 nm and density of 43.8 x 10(10) cm(-2) is observed. Highly dense alumina nanoparticles were deposited on surface of AA6061 alloy by PLCVD process. Several silicon nanostructures, such as nanoparticles and microrings, can be produced under different experimental conditions. The formation mechanisms of these nanostructures were also discussed. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.