This volume collects the proceedings of the 23rd International Course of Crystallography, entitled "X-ray and Neutron Dynamical Diffraction, Theory and Applications," which took place in the fascinating setting of Erice in Sicily, Italy. It was run as a NATO Advanced Studies Institute with A. Authier (France) and S. Lagomarsino (Italy) as codirectors, and L. Riva di Sanseverino and P. Spadon (Italy) as local organizers, R. Colella (USA) and B. K. Tanner (UK) being the two other members of the organizing committee. It was attended by about one hundred participants from twenty four different countries. Two basic theories may be used to describe the diffraction of radiation by crystalline matter. The first one, the so-called geometrical, or kinematical theory, is approximate and is applicable to small, highly imperfect crystals. It is used for the determination of crystal structures and describes the diffraction of powders and polycrystalline materials. The other one, the so-called dynamical theory, is applicable to perfect or nearly perfect crystals. For that reason, dynamical diffraction of X-rays and neutrons constitutes the theoretical basis of a great variety of applications such as: * the techniques used for the characterization of nearly perfect high technology materials, semiconductors, piezoelectric, electrooptic, ferroelectric, magnetic crystals, * the X-ray optical devices used in all modem applications of Synchrotron Radiation (EXAFS, High Resolution X-ray Diffractometry, magnetic and nuclear resonant scattering, topography, etc. ), and * X-ray and neutron interferometry.

Optical networks, employing Wavelength-Division Multiplexing (WDM) and wavelength routing, are believed to be the answer for the explosion in IP traffic and the emergence of real-time multimedia applications. These networks offer quantum leaps in transmission capacity as well as eliminate the electronic bottleneck in existing metropolitan and backbone networks. During the last decade, we witnessed a tremendous growth in the theoretical and experimental studies focusing on the cost-effective deployment of wavelength routed networks. The majority of these studies, however, assumed ideal behavior of optical devices. In this book, we argue that for the successful deployment of optical networks, design algorithms and network protocols must be extended to accommodate the non-ideal behavior of optical devices. These extensions should not only focus on maintaining acceptable signal quality (e.g., 12 maintaining BER above 10- ), but should also motivate the development of optimization algorithms and signaling protocols which take transmission impairments into consideration. In addition, the design of enabling technologies, such as optical cross-connects, should be transmission-efficient. This book is a comprehensive treatment of the impact of transmission impairments on the design and management of wavelength-routed networks. We start with transparent networks, focusing on power implications such as cross-connect design, device allocation problems, and management issues. In this all-optical model, we propose a design space based on reduction in overall cost and ease of network management. This design concept, motivates various switch architectures and different optimization problems.

In recent years it has been recognized that tundishes playa critical role in affecting the quality of the finished steel products. Furthermore, proper tundish design may be even more important in the development of the novel continuous casting pro cesses that are now in varying stages of realizatic)ll. Traditionally, physical modeling has played a key role in tundish design, but the recently evolved computational software packages, the readily accessible computa tional hardware, and, perhaps most important, the growing experience with tackling a broad range of computational fluid flow problems within a metallurgical context have made mathematical modeling an important factor in this field. Our aim in writing this book has been to bring realistic perspectives to tundish design. The main purpose is to provide a good physical understanding of what is happening in tundishes, together with a realistic discussion of topics that are still not quite clear. The process metallurgist active in this field has many tools at his or her disposal, including mathematical modeling, physical modeling, and measure ments on full plant-scale systems. In this monograph we seek to show how these ideas may be combined to provide a good basic understanding and, hence, an attempt at an optimal design."

Residual stresses are always introduced in materials when they are produced, or when they undergo non-uniform plastic deformation during use. The circumstances that can cause residual stresses are therefore numerous. Residual stresses exist in all materials and, depending on their distribution, can playa beneficial role (for example, compressive surface stress) or have a catastrophic effect, especially on fatigue behaviour and corrosion properties. The subject of residual stresses took form around 1970 with the development of methods to measure macroscopic deformations during the machining of materials or on an atomic scale by X-ray diffraction. These techniques have made considerable progress in the last 20 years. The meetings organized in several countries (Germany, France, Japan, etc. ) have largely contributed to this progress, aided by the numerous exchanges of information and knowledge to which they have given rise. Studies of the formation of residual stresses began more slowly, but have progressed with the emergence of increasingly realistic models of materials behaviour and with access to ever more powerful codes for numerical calculations. Two successive meetings for discussing this topic have been held in Europe. The first, held in 1982 in Nancy (France), consisted of 30 participants from 5 countries. The second was held in Linkoping (Sweden) in 1984, with 80 participants of 16 nationalities. It was decided to hold a first International Conference, ICRS, to address all aspects of the problem. Held in 1986 in Garmisch-Partenkirschen (FRG), it was an assembly of neady 300 participants from 21 countries.

The present volume contains the texts of the invited talks delivered at the Fifth International Conference on Recent Progress in Many-Body Theories held in Oulu, Finland during the period 3-8 August 1987. The general format and style of the meeting followed closely those which had evolved from the earlier conferences in the series: Trieste 1978, Oaxtepec 1981, Altenberg 1983 and San Francisco 1985. Thus, the conferences in this series are in tended, as far as is practicable, to cover in a broad and balanced fashion both the entire spectrum of theoretical tools developed to tackle the quan tum many-body problem, and their major fields of. application. One of the major aims of the series is to foster the exchange of ideas and techniques among physicists working in such diverse areas of application of many-body theories as nucleon-nucleon interactions, nuclear physics, astronomy, atomic and molecular physics, quantum chemistry, quantum fluids and plasmas, and solid-state and condensed matter physics. A special feature of the present meeting however was that particular attention was paid in the programme to such topics of current interest in solid-state physics as high-temperature superconductors, heavy fermions, the quantum Hall effect, and disorder. A panel discussion was also organised during the conference, under the chair manship of N. W. Ashcroft, to consider the latest developments in the extreme ly rapidly growing field of high-T superconductors."

The field of non-crystalline materials has seen the emergence of many challeng ing problems during its long history. In recent years, the interest in polymeric and biological disordered matter has stimulated new activities which in turn have enlarged the organic and inorganic glass community. The current research fields and recent progress have extended our knowledge of the rich phenomenol ogy of glassy systems, where the role of disorder is fundamental for the underlying microscopic dynamics. In addition, despite the lack of a unified theory, many interesting theoretical models have recently evolved. The present volume offers the reader a collection of topics representing the current state in the understanding of disorder effects as well as a survey of the basic problems and phenomena involved. The task of compiling a book devoted to disordered systems has benefited much from a seminar organized by the W.-E. Heraeus Foundation in Bad Honnef in April 1992, where we had the opportunity to discuss the project with most of the authors. Here we wish to thank the Heraeus Foundation for their support, and the authors and Springer-Verlag, especially Dr. Marion Hertel, for the pleasant cooperation."

Modem materials science is exploiting novel tools of solid-state physics and chemistry to obtain an unprecedented understanding of the structure of matter at the atomic level. The direct outcome of this understanding is the ability to design and fabricate new materials whose properties are tailored to a given device ap plication. Although applications of materials science can range from low weight, high strength composites for the automobile and aviation industry to biocompat ible polymers, in no other field has progress been more strikingly rapid than in that of electronic materials. In this area, it is now possible to predict from first principles the properties of hypothetical materials and to construct artificially structured materials with layer-by-Iayer control of composition and microstruc ture. The resulting superlattices, multiple quantum wells, and high temperature superconductors, among others, will dominate our technological future. A large fraction of the current undergraduate and graduate students in science and engi neering will be directly involved in furthering the revolution in electronic mate rials. With this book, we want to welcome such students to electronic materials research and provide them with an introduction to this exciting and rapidly de veloping area of study. A second purpose of this volume is to provide experts in other fields of solid state physics and chemistry with an overview of contemporary research within the field of electronic materials."

For a number of years it has been a General Motors Research Laboratories custom to hold a symposium on a subject which is new and emerging, and to invite the best people in the world in that subject to come together to talk to each other. Initially, I had some difficulty in regarding foundry processes as a new and emerging subject. Copper alloys have been in foundry practice for about six thousand years. Foundrymen working with those alloys have been recognized, as such, for nearly all that time. Iron has a much shorter history, probably only three or four thousand years. So what's new? What is new is that a subject which has always been so complex and so difficult that it could only be a craft skill, with bits and pieces of knowledge and bits and pieces of insight, has begun to yield to new abilities to solve very complex problems. We do this now because we can handle great amounts of data by computational means, using new and more complicated theoretical treatments than we could deal with before. In fact, we have a new technology with which we can attack these terribly difficult problems. Thus, foundry processing is becoming a new subject because new things can be done with it.

This is the second book in a new series - "Materials Research and Engineering" - devoted to the science and technology of materials. "Materials Research and Engineering" evolves from a previous series on "Reine und Allgemeine Metallkunde," which was edited by Werner KBster until his eightieth birthday in 1976. Although the present series is an outgrowth of the earlier one, it should not and cannot be regarded as a continuation. There had to be a shift of scope - and a change in presenta tion as well. Metallurgy is no longer an isolated art and science. Rather, it is linked by its scientific basis and technological implications to non-metallic and composite materials, as well as to processes for production, refining, shaping, surface treatment, and application. Thus, the new series, "Materials Research and Engineering," will present up-to-date information on scientific and technological pro gress, as well as on issues of general relevance within the engineering field and industrial society. Following the general position analysis of materials in the present world as given in volume 1, now volume 2 focuses on a special topic: It provides a thorough treatment of theoretical, experimental, and applied aspects of superplasticity."

In this volume, the shock compression technology of materials is described in parallel with the latest research results and their background. In the past, this type of technology was developed in connection with military techniques by certain particular research organizations. For this reason, researchers of materials in general have had less opportunity to make use of the technology. The conventional technology of shock compression has now been established, and is recognized as being remarkably useful as a means of materials science study. The feasibility of shock compression technology is dealt with in this book, as well as the latest research results for general material scientists. The shock synthesis of ceramics and intermetallic compounds, as well as shock compression behavior, are also described. In contrast to conventional works of this kind, this book describes shock compression studies performed by material scientists.

The triennial International Alloy Conferences (lACs) aim at the identification and promotion of the common elements developed in the study, either experimental, phenomenological, or theoretical and computational, of materials properties across materials types, from metals to minerals. To accomplish this goal, the lACs bring together scientists from a wide spectrum of materials science including experiment, theory, modeling, and computation, incorporating a broad range of materials properties. The first lAC, lAC-I, took place in Athens, Greece, June 16-21, 1996. The present volume of proceedings contains the papers presented at IAC-2, that took place in Davos, Switzerland, August 8-13, 1999. The topics in this book fall into several themes, which suggest a number of different classification schemes. We have chosen a scheme that classifies the papers in the volume into the categories Microstructural Properties; Ordering, Kinetics and Diffusion; Magnetic Properties and Elastic Properties. We have juxtaposed apparently disparate of revealing the dynamic character approaches to similar physical processes, in the hope of the processes under consideration. We hope this will invigorate new kinds of discussion and reveal challenges and new avenues to the description and prediction of properties of materials in the solid state and the conditions that produce them.

Thisbookistalkingabouthowtousesupercriticalwater(SCW)torapidlyproduce micro- and nano-particles of metal oxides, inorganic salts, metals and organics. Itcoversbasicprinciples,experimentalmethodologiesandreactors,particlep- duction,characterizationsandapplicationsaswellastherecentadvancement. Fine particlescanbeproducedbybothchemicalandphysicalprecipitationofproducts from SCW. They can be used as catalysts, materials in ceramics and electronic devices andcompositematerials. Particlesareeasilyproduced continuouslyina owreactorinshortreactiontimes(0. 4s?2min)butcanalsobesynthesizedin batchreactorsforlongreactiontimes(e. g. ,12h). Theycanbeeasilystudiedin-situ microscopically(optical/IR/Raman/SR-XRD)inanopticalmicro-reactor,diamond anvilcell. Thesize,sizedistribution,crystalgrowth&structure,andmorphologyof particlescanbecontrolledbychangingtheconcentrationsofstatingmaterials,pH, pressures,temperatures,heating&coolingrates,organicmodi cations,reducingor oxidizingatmospheres, owratesandreactiontimes. Thisisthe rstbooktosystematicallyintroduceusingSCWforproductionof neparticles. Itisanidealreferencebookforengineers,researchersandgraduate studentsinmaterialscienceandengineering. vii Acknowledgments I would like to thank Drs. T. Ogi & T. Minowa (Biomass Technology Research Center,NationalInstituteofAdvancedIndustrialScienceandTechnology,Japan), and Profs. K. Arai, H. Inomata, R. L. Smith Jr. and T. Adschiri (Chemical Engineering,TohokuUniversity,Japan),whoinitiallyintroducedthehydrothermal andsupercritical uidsareastomewhenIworkedinJapanfrom1996to1999. Thanks are also due to Profs. J. A. Kozinski, R. I. L. Guthrie (Materials Engineering,McGillUniversity,Canada)andI. S. Butler(Chemistry,McGill)for theirguidanceinmyworkonhydrothermalprocessduringmyworkinCanadafrom 1999to2007. Profs. W. Bassett (Geological Sciences, Cornell University) and D. Baker (Earth&PlanetarySciences,McGill)forinstructionsregardingDAC,Dr. I-Ming Chou(U. S. GeologicalSurvey)forusefuldiscussionsofthepressurecalculation procedure. Drs. M. Watanabe and T. Sato (Research Center of Supercritical Fluid Technology, Tohoku University, Japan) for discussions about the experimental set-upofthebatchand owreactors. Drs. S. Xu,H. Assaaoudi,R. HashaikehandA. Sobhy,whoworkedwithmeat McGillinCanada. ix Contents 1 Introduction...1 1. 1 Background ...1 1. 2 RapidExpansionofSupercriticalSolution(RESS)Process ...4 1. 3 SupercriticalAntisolvent(SAS)Process ...4 1. 4 OtherPhysicalProcesses ...5 1. 5 SupercriticalWaterProcess ...5 References...8 2 Supercritical Water Process...11 2. 1 Introduction ...11 2. 2 BatchReactor ...15 2. 3 FlowReactor...18 2. 4 DiamondAnvilCell(DAC)...20 References...25 3 Metal Oxides Synthesis...29 3. 1 Introduction ...29 3. 2 Boehmite(AlOOH) ...30 3. 3 Ferrites...31 3. 4 Phosphor(YAG) ...32 3. 5 LiCoO /LiMn O ...33 2 2 4 3. 6 Ce Zr O (x =0?1)...33 1?x x 2 3. 7 PotassiumHexatitanate,PotassiumNiobateandTitania ...35 3. 8 ZincOxide...38 3. 9 Nickel,Nickel/CobaltOxide...

The synthesis of multicomponent/multilayered superconducting, conducting, semiconducting and insulating thin films has become the subject of an intensive, worldwide, interdisciplinary research effort. The development of deposition-characterization techniques and the science and technology related to the synthesis of these films are critical for the successful evolution of this interdisciplinary field of research and the implementation of the new materials in a whole new generation of advanced microdevices. This book contains the lectures and contributed papers on various scientific and technological aspects of multicomponent and multilayered thin films presented at a NATO/ASI. Compared to other recent books on thin films, the distinctive character of this book is the interdisciplinary treatment of the various fields of research related to the different thin film materials mentioned above. The wide range of topics discussed in this book include vacuum-deposition techniques, synthesis-processing, characterization, and devices of multicomponent/multilayered oxide high temperature superconducting, ferroelectric, electro-optic, optical, metallic, silicide, and compound semiconductor thin films. The book presents an unusual intedisciplinary exchange of ideas between researchers with cross-disciplinary backgrounds and it will be useful to established investigators as well as postdoctoral and graduate students.

Modulated crystals have been intensively investigated over the past several years and it is now evident that an understanding of their crystallography and microstructure is fundamental to the elucidation of the physical properties and phase transitions in these materials. This book brings together for the first time the crystallographic descriptions and experimental methods for the structural and microstructural analysis of modulated crystals as described by well-known researchers in the various areas. The emphasis is on charge density wave modulations, and the detailed analysis of the prototypical NbTe4/TaTe4 system gives practical applications of the methods. Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy is a new technique providing significant new insights into atomic scale details of the modulations' structures and a chapter on this method is included.

Intersubband transitions in quantum wells have attracted tremendous attention in recent years, mainly due to the promise of applications in the mid and far-infrared regions (2--20 mum). Many of the papers presented in Quantum Well Intersubband Transition Physics and Devices are on the basic linear intersubband transition processes, detector physics and detector application, reflecting the current state of understanding and detector applications, where highly uniform, large focal plane arrays have been demonstrated. Other areas are still in their early stages, including infrared modulation, harmonic generation and emission.

4. 2 Solid Circular Shafts-Angle of Twist and Shearing Stresses 159 4. 3 Hollow Circular Shafts-Angle of Twist and Shearing Stresses 166 4. 4 Principal Stresses and Strains Associated with Torsion 173 4. 5 Analytical and Experimental Solutions for Torsion of Members of Noncircular Cross Sections 179 4. 6 Shearing Stress-Strain Properties 188 *4. 7 Computer Applications 195 5 Stresses in Beams 198 5. 1 Introduction 198 5. 2 Review of Properties of Areas 198 5. 3 Flexural Stresses due to Symmetric Bending of Beams 211 5. 4 Shear Stresses in Symmetrically Loaded Beams 230 *5. 5 Flexural Stresses due to Unsymmetric Bending of Beams 248 *5. 6 Computer Applications 258 Deflections of Beams 265 I 6. 1 Introduction 265 6. 2 Moment-Curvature Relationship 266 6. 3 Beam Deflections-Two Successive Integrations 268 6. 4 Derivatives of the Elastic Curve Equation and Their Physical Significance 280 6. 5 Beam Deflections-The Method of Superposition 290 6. 6 Construction of Moment Diagrams by Cantilever Parts 299 6. 7 Beam Deflections-The Area-Moment Method 302 *6. 8 Beam Deflections-Singularity Functions 319 *6. 9 Beam Deflections-Castigliano's Second Theorem 324 *6. 10 Computer Applications 332 7 Combined Stresses and Theories of Failure 336 7. 1 Introduction 336 7. 2 Axial and Torsional Stresses 336 Axial and Flexural Stresses 342 7. 3 Torsional and Flexural Stresses 352 7. 4 7. 5 Torsional, Flexural, and Axial Stresses 358 *7. 6 Theories of Failure 365 Computer Applications 378 *7.

More than 30 years after the discovery of transition metals and organometal lics as catalysts for olefin polymerization these catalysts did not have lost their fascination. Since 1953 when Karl Ziegler has discovered the catalytic polymerization of ethylene leading to plastically formable polymers which are mechanically stable up to temperatures of about 100 DegreesC, synthetic polymers and rubbers have made their way right into private houses. This discovery has been a main impetus for the fast growing production of plastics. The stereoselective poly merization of propylene and other long-chain a-olefins first detected by Giulio Natta leads to an even broadened field of applications. Another enforcing factor were the developments of Standard Oil of Indiana and Phillipps Petroleum Company who engaged in the polymerization of a-olefins supported molybdenum, cobalt and later on chromium catalysts which clearly indicates the wide variety of suitable systems. This kind of research acknowledged merit when in 1963 the Nobel prize of chemistry was awarded to Ziegler and Natta. Although to a great extent there is a technical application for these catalysts, up to now the nature of the active centres and many reaction mechanisms are not completely known.

The recent discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in copper based oxides is an event of major importance not only with respect to the physical phenomenon itself but also because it definitely shows that solid state chemistry, and especially the crystal chemistry of oxides, has a crucial place in the synthesis and understanding of new materials for future appli cations. The numerous papers published in the field of high Tc supercon ductors in the last five years demonstrate that the great complexity of these materials necessitates a close collaboration between physicists and solid state chemists. This book is based to a large extent on our experience of the crystal chemistry of copper oxides, which we have been studying in the laboratory for more than twelve years, but it also summarizes the main results which have been obtained for these compounds in the last five years relating to their spectacular superconducting properties. We have focused on the struc ture, chemical bonding and nonstoichiometry of these materials, bearing in mind that redox reactions are the key to the optimization of their supercon ducting properties, owing to the importance of the mixed valence of copper and its Jahn-Teller effect. We have also drawn on studies of extended defects by high-resolution electron microscopy and on their creation by ir radiation effects."

A special survey of the extensive field of Constitutive Laws is given in 11 lectures, divided into three parts: Thermodynamics of Materials, Stochastic Processes and Material Behaviour, Constitutive Relations for Simple Fluids and Microphysics of Solids. The collection of lectures comprehends a novel survey of thermodynamical constitutive theories, and contributions to material theories with after-effects including experiments, stochastic constitutive laws, molecular dynamics for simulating material properties, electrodynamical constitutive properties, and thermodynamic and microphysical modelling of polymers. The selected lectures emphasize the microstructural aspect of constitutive laws, and this collection presents a new facet of constitutive laws.

During the oil embargo, in the winter 1973174, parts of Western Europe present ed an almost war-like aspect on Saturdays and Sundays: no traffic on the high ways, no crowds at ski resorts and other weekend entertainment places, no gaso line at the pumps. Living and teaching then in that part of the world, and discussing the situa tion with our students, we came to the conclusion that it would be timely to col lect the fine chemistry already known at the time in the field of conversion of coal to gasoline and other chemicals, and by this way help to draw the attention to this important alternative to crude oil. The idea of this book was born. The energy shock of the early seventies has been healthy and of great conse quences in chemistry. Large amounts of research money have been put to work since, and our knowledge of the possibilities and limitations of coal-based chemistry has increased enormously. During several years it appeared inap propriate to write a monograph about a topic which was in the midst of such an impetuous development. Nevertheless, we collected, and critically selected, the upcoming work as it appeared in the literature, and also tried to provide some modest input ourselves. Now, ten years later, the situation seems to be settled to a certain degree."

This volume contains the lectures presented at the mini-symposium on "Micromechanics" held in conjunction with the CSME Mechanical Engineer ing Forum 1990 between the 3rd and 8th June, 1990 at the University of Toronto, Canada. The expressed purpose of this symposium was to discuss some recent developments in the Micromechanics of Materials and how ad vances in this field now relate to the solution of practical engineer ing problems. Due to the time limit set for this section of the Engineer ing Forum as well as the restriction on the number of papers to be pre sented, it was not possible to cover a much wider range of topics. How ever, an attempt was made to include the most important advances asso ciated with the progress made in micromechanics in its application to material science and engineering over the past decade. Thus, the topics are concerned with: the fundamental aspects of the thermodynamics of structured solids (part I), - the micromechanical behaviour of alloys (part II), - the modelling of the material behaviour on the basis of continuum theory (part III), and finally the important new approach to the characterization of various mate rials and their responses to external agencies by the use of proba bilistic micromechanics (part IV). We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Chairman of the Organizing Committee, Prof. F. P. J. Rimrott, and the President of the CSME, Prof. T. S."

Progress in Pacific Polymer Science 3 continues the record of the current status of major topics in polymer science.
The invited lecturers cover the following topics:
- Adding Value to Natural Polymers
- Polymers and the Environment
- Polymers in Mining and Mineral Processing
- Multicomponent Polymer Systems
- Characterization, Properties and Processing
- Functional Polymers
- Polymers for Medical Applications
- Polymer Recycling
- Polymer Surfaces of Biological Significance
- New and Advanced Polymer Materials

The 1984 Advanced Study Institute on "Electronic Structure, Dynamics and Quantum Structural Properties of Condensed Matter" took place at the Corsendonk Conference Center, close to the City of Antwerpen, from July 16 till 27, 1984. This NATO Advanced Study Institute was motivated by the research in my Institute, where, in 1971, a project was started on "ab-initio" phonon calculations in Silicon. I~ is my pleasure to thank several instances and people who made this ASI possible. First of all, the sponsor of the Institute, the NATO Scientific Committee. Next, the co-sponsors: Agfa-Gevaert, Bell Telephone Mfg. Co. N.V., C & A, Esso Belgium*, CDC Belgium, Janssens Pharmaceutica, Kredietbank and the Scientific Office of the U.S. Army. Special thanks are due to Dr. P. Van Camp and Drs. H. Nachtegaele, who, over several months, prepared the practical aspects of the ASI with the secretarial help of Mrs. R.-M. Vandekerkhof. I also like to. thank Mrs. M. Cuyvers who prepared and organized the subject and material index and Mrs. H. Evans for typing-assist ance. I express particular gratitude to Mrs. F. Nedee, who, like in 1981 and 1982, has put the magnificent Corsendonk Conference Center at our disposal and to Mr. D. Van Der Brempt, Director of the Corsendonk Conference Center, for the efficient way in which he and his staff took care of the practical organization at the Conference Center.

This book is about thin films; what they are, how they are prepared, how they are characterized, and what they are used for. The contents of this book not only showcase the diversity of thin films, but also reveals the commonality among the work performed in a variety of areas. The chapters in this volume are based on invited papers presented by prominent researchers in the field at a Symposium on "Thin Films: Preparation, Characterization, Applications" at the 221st National Meeting of the American Chemical Society held in San Diego, California. The coverage of the symposium was extensive; topics ranged from highly-ordered metal adlayers on well-defined electrode surfaces to bio-organic films on non-metallic nanoparticles. An objective of this book is for the readers to be able to draw from the experience and results of others in order to improve and expand the understanding of the science and technology of their own thin films systems.