The thickness and chemical composition of pulsed laser deposited thin Bi and Si-Ge alloy films have been measured by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) with micrometer lateral resolution. The experimental results are supplemented with computer simulations of RBS spectra, elemental maps and tomographic images, providing identification of different kinds of particulates and fine 3D information about the surface. The impact of surface roughness on RBS characterization of thin films is also discussed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.