A fast and high throughput technique has been proposed for the preparation of ordered nanopatterns. A self-organized monolayer of silica nanospheres (Langmuir-Blodgett film) is laid on and its hexagonal pattern is transferred to the sample surface by means of RF plasma etching. The technique was developed with the aim to fabricate nanopatterns onto surfaces or thin films of diverse materials. It is a fast, low cost, environmentally sound technique for the fabrication of hexagonal patterns of feature size down to a few ten nanometers. The mechanism and the parameters of RF plasma patterning affecting the nanostructure formation were revealed in sputter deposited Pt layers by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Moreover, the versatility of the proposed method is demonstrated by fabricating hexagonal patterns in samples of various metals, semiconductors, and insulators. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.