when the ion energy is higher, hundreds of kev to a few mev (mega-electronvolt) they are called nuclear microprobes. nuclear microprobes are extremely powerful tools that utilize ion beam analysis techniques as microscopies with spot sizes in the micro-/nanometre range. these instruments are applied to solve scientific problems in a diverse range of fields, from microelectronics to biomedicine. in addition to the development of new ways to exploit these probes as analytical tools (this application area of the nuclear microprobes is called nuclear microscopy), strong progress has been made in the area of materials modification recently (most of which can be described as pbw, proton beam writing).