Azimuthal plots for RHEPD (reflection high-energy positron diffraction) and RHEED (reflection high-energy electron diffraction) were calculated using dynamical diffraction theory and then compared. It was assumed that RHEPD and RHEED azimuthal plots can be collected practically by recording the intensity while rotating the sample around the axis perpendicular to the surface (for the case of X-ray diffraction, such forms of data are called Renninger scans). It was found that RHEPD plots were similar to RHEED plots if they were compared at Bragg reflections of the same order. RHEPD plots can also be determined in the region of total external reflection and for such conditions multiple scattering effects turned out to be very weak. The findings for azimuthal plots are also discussed in the context of the formation mechanisms of Kikuchi patterns.
Keywords: Kikuchi patterns; Renninger scans; azimuthal plots; dynamical diffraction theory.