A vacuum arc plasma evaporation (VAPE) method using both oxide fragments and gas sources as the source materials is demonstrated to be very effective for the preparation of multicomponent oxide thin films. Highly transparent and conductive Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films were prepared by the VAPE method using a ZnO fragment target and a gas source Al dopant, aluminum acethylacetonate (Al(C5H7O2)(3)) contained in a stainless steel vessel. The Al content in the AZO films was altered by controlling the partial pressure (or flow rate) of the Al dopant gas. High deposition rates as well as uniform distributions of resistivity and thickness on the substrate surface were obtained on large area glass substrates. A low resistivity on the order of 10(-4) Omega cm and an average transmittance above 80% in the visible range were obtained in AZO thin films deposited on glass substrates. (C) 2004 American Vacuum Society.