The physical processes underlying the technique that uses low-energy (0.5—5 keV) backscattered ions of noble gases (LEIS) and its hardware implementation are reviewed. The specific features of LEIS surface diagnostics, including the interpretation of energy spectra, quantitative elemental analysis, and options for studying the surface structure, the particle—surface interaction potential, and the presence of clusters in solid solutions, are discussed. Software codes for computer modeling of ion—surface interaction processes are presented. The advantages of energy-mass analysis of scattered ions are considered; the application of ion scattering in state-of-the-art ion microscopes is discussed, and the scattering of noble gas ions in the hyperthermal energy range is examined. The main areas of LEIS application for the analysis of the surface and near-surface layers of various materials and devices are overviewed, and the prospects for further development of low-energy ion scattering spectroscopy are assessed.

Typically, an English full text is available in about 1 month from the date of publication of the original article.

Keywords: surface diagnostics, ion scattering, neutralization, dispersion, fast ionized recoil atoms, energy-mass analysis, hyperthermal energy, ion microscopes PACS: 34.35.+a, 68.49.Sf, 79.20.Rf (all) DOI: 10.3367/UFNe.2025.09.040043 URL: https://ufn.ru/en/articles/2026/1/d/ Citation: Tolstoguzov A B, Babenko P Yu, Zinoviev A N "Surface analysis by low-energy ion scattering spectroscopy" Phys. Usp. 69 (1) (2026) Received: 13th, January 2025, revised: 23rd, September 2025, accepted: 24th, September 2025 Оригинал: Толстогузов А Б, Бабенко П Ю, Зиновьев А Н «Диагностика поверхности методом спектроскопии обратно рассеянных ионов низких энергий» УФН 196 48–82 (2026); DOI: 10.3367/UFNr.2025.09.040043