Reflection electron energy loss spectra (REELS) recorded with a 1 keV electron beam have been used to characterize the surface of amorphous SiO2 compound and to obtain its complex dielectric function in the energy loss range 0-50 eV by their treatment numerically. The optical data have been derived from the energy loss function Im [-1/epsilon] using the Kramers-Kronig analysis. The obtained results are very interesting and agree well with the published values obtained by other methods. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.