Anodic passivation of titanium in dilute sulphuric acid has been investigated using ellipsometry, AFM and STM. The passive film forms by nucleation and growth of surface oxide particles, which are shown to have a crystalline structure when examined ex-situ after completion of the passivation treatment. A new surface treatment technique has been developed, consisting of multiple sequential passivation and relaxation stages, with each passivation step designed to grow approximately one monolayer of oxide. Varying the duration of the relaxation steps is shown to have significant effects on the surface morphology of the passive film. (C) 2011 The Electrochemical Society. [DOI: 10.1149/2.065111jes] All rights reserved.