The linear diffusion equation is proposed to provide a macroscopic description of ionic mobility in nanostructures. This approach has been demonstrated to account for diffusion processes in nanostructured titania-based films. The formulation of a classical diffusion inverse problem and the experimental determination of concentration profiles by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry were used for the purpose. The model has allowed the measurement of the diffusion coefficient of W and Mo impurities in titania.