A simple and robust method is developed for directly depositing aligned and well separated nanorod arrays onto cylindrical objects based on oblique angle deposition. By rotating the uniform or tapered cylindrical object such as optical fiber with a proper tilting angle, aligned nanorods from materials such as metals, semiconductors, and metal oxides have been successfully deposited. With a slight modification, multilayer film/nanorod and nanorod/nanorod structures have also been demonstrated. This method has the advantage of being able to coat aligned nanorods on cylindrical objects at low temperature, and it is particularly promising for preparing nanostructured fiber optical probes for sensor applications. (c) 2005 American Vacuum Society.