The utilization of nanostructured materials for modern applications gained more and more importance during the last few years. As examples super-fluorescent quantum dots, the use of carbon nano tubes (CNTs) in microelectronics, electrospun fibers in filter membranes, thin film coatings for solar cells, mirrors or LEDs, semiconductor electronics, and functionalized surfaces may be named to address only a few topics. To optimize the systems and enable the full range of capabilities of nanostructures a thorough characterization of the surface-near topography (e.g. roughness, thickness, lateral dimension) as well as of the chemical composition is essential. As a versatile tool for spatial and chemical characterization XUV reflectometry, scatterometry and diffractometry is proposed. Three different experimental setups have been realized evaluating spectral resolved reflectance under constant incidence angle, angular resolved reflectance at a constant wavelength, or a combined approach using laboratory scaled XUV sources to gain insight into chemical composition, film thickness and surface/interface roughness. Experiments on near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (NEXAFS) at the carbon K-edge have been performed. The investigated systems range from synthetic polymers (PMMA, PI) over organic substances (humic acids) to biological matter (lipids), delivering unique spectra for each compound. Thus NEXAFS spectroscopy using a table-top XUV source could be established as a highly surface sensitive fingerprint method for chemical analysis. Future extended experiments will investigate the silicon L-edge where e.g. silicon oxide interlayers below high-k or other nano-layered material on Sisubstrates depict a technological important group of composite systems.