We have developed a code based on artificial neural networks (ANN) to analy
se Rutherford backscattering data. In particular, we have applied the code
to the analysis of germanium implants in silicon substrates. Here, we study
the reliability and accuracy of the quantitative results obtained. We firs
t constructed three different training data sets. The first data set was fu
lly general. On the second one, we restricted the experimental conditions t
o well-defined values, and on the third we also restricted the implantation
parameters (depth and dose of implant) to a narrower range. We then studie
d the trade-off between generality and accuracy of the ANNs obtained. Furth
ermore, for a given architecture we applied two different training processe
s. The first was backpropagation on the whole data set. In the second we ex
cluded, after an initial training phase, all the training cases with errors
double the average and then continued training. Each of the processes was
applied to the three different data sets. We report the performance of the
ANNs so obtained when applied to real experimental data. Copyright (C) 2001
John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.