The surface processes that HeSE can measure can be broadly divided into elastic, quasielastic and inelastic processes. Measurements in which the predominant signal is elastically scattered include standard helium diffraction and the measurement of selective adsorption resonances. Quasielastic measurements generally correspond to measurements of microscopic surface diffusion in which the Doppler-like energy gain and loss of the helium atoms is small compared to the beam energy. More strongly inelastic measurements can provide information about energy loss channels on the surface such as surface phonons.