Unambiguous automatic evaluation of multiple Ion Beam Analysis data with Simulated Annealing

We present, for the first time, simultaneous analysis of multiple Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) spectra of the same sample, which may be Rutherford Backscat tering (RBS), non-Rutherford elastic scattering, and/or Elastic Recoil Dete ction Analysis (ERDA) spectra, ensuring a fully consistent analysis of all data. Any combination of incident ion at any energy, with or without a stop ping foil before the detector, can be treated, and plural scattering correc tions can be introduced. The program uses the Simulated Annealing global op timisation algorithm, and is fully automatic, with no input from the user e xcept for the data and the experimental conditions. Two concrete examples a re given, for which the analysis time was comparable to the data collection time. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.