The liquid crystalline state may be identified as a distinct and unique state of matter which is characterised by properties which resemble those of both solids and liquids. It was first recognised in the middle of the last century through the study of nerve myelin and derivatives of cholesterol. The research in the area really gathered momentum, however, when as a result of the pioneering work of Gray in the early 1970's organic compounds exhibiting liquid crystalline properties were shown to be suitable to form the basis of display devices in the electronic products. The study of liquid crystals is truly multidisciplinary and has attached the attention of physicists, biologists, chemists, mathematicians and electronics engineers. It is therefore impossible to cover all these aspects fully in two small volumes and therefore it was decided in view of the overall title of the series to concentrate on the structural and bonding aspects of the subject. The Chapters presented in these two volumes have been organised to cover the following fundamental aspects of the subiect. The calculation of the structures of liquid crystals, an account of their dynamical properties and a discussion of computer simulations of liquid crystalline phases formed by Gay Berne mesogens. The relationships between molecular conformation and packing are analysed in some detail. The crystal structures of liquid crystal mesogens and the importance of their X ray scattering properties for characterisational purposes are discussed.

H. Yoshida, T. Ichikawa Electron Spin Echo Studies of Free Radicals in Irridated Polymers M. Ogasawara Application of Pulse Radiolysis to the Study of Polymers and Polymerizations I. Kaetsu Radiation Synthesis of Polymeric Materials for Biomedical and Biochemical Applications S. Tagawa Radiation Effects of Ion Beams on Polymers H.Yamaoka Polymer Materials for Fusion Reactors

The IUTAM Symposium on Constitutive Relation in High/Very High Strain Rates (CRHVHSR) was held October 16 - 19, 1995, at Seminar House, Science University of Tokyo, under the sponsorship of IUTAM, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, The Commemorative Association for the Japan World Exposition (1970), Inoue Foundation for Science, The Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space Sciences, and Science University of Tokyo. The proposal to hold the symposium was accepted by the General Assembly of IUT AM held in Haifa, Israel, in August 1992, and the scientists mentioned below were appointed by the Bureau of IUTAM to serve as members of the Scientific Committee. The main object of the symposium was to make a general survey of recent developments in the research of constitutive relations in high and very high strain rates and related problems in high velocity solid mechanics, and to explore further new ideas for dealing with unresolved problems of a fundamental nature as well as of practical importance. The subjects covered theoretical, experimental, and numerical fields in the above-mentioned problems in solids, covering metals, polymers, ceramics, and composites. Emphasis was given to the following fields: 1. Material characterization of solids in high velocity deformation, experimental techniques, typical data obtained by these techniques, modeling, and constitutive relations 2. Strain rate dependent elasto-visco-plastic stress waves 3. Crack initiation, propagation, and dynamic fracture toughness 4. Dynamic stress concentration 5. Structural dynamics in impact and constitutive relations of solids 6.

1. R.C. Mehrotra, Jaipur, India Present Status and Future Potential of the Sol-Gel Process 2. J. Fricke, A. Emmerling, Wuerzburg, FRG Aerogels - Preparation, Properties, Applications 3. S. Sakka, T. Yoko, Kyoto, Japan Sol-Gel-Derived Coating Films and Applications 4. H. Schmidt, Saarbruecken, FRG Thin Films, the Chemical Processing up to Gelation 5. M. Henry, J.P. Jolivet, J. Livage, Paris, France Aqueous Chemistry of Metal Cations: Hydrolysis, Condensation and Complexation 6. R. Reisfeld, Jerusalem, Israel, C.K. Joergensen, Geneva, Switzerland Optical Properties of Colorants or Luminescent Species in Sol-Gel Glasses

Some years ago in Paisley (Scotland) the International Conference on Composite Materials, headed by Professor I. Marshall, took place. During the conference, I presented a paper on the manufacturing and properties of the Soviet Union's composite materials. Soviet industry had made great achievements in the manufacturing of composite materials for aerospace and rocket applications. For example, the fraction of composites (predominantly carbon fibre reinforced plastics) in the large passenger aircrafts Tu-204 and 11-86 is 12-15% of the structure weight. The percentage by weight share of composites in military aircraft is greater and the fraction of composites (organic fibre reinforced plastics) used in military helicopters exceeds a half of the total structure weight. The nose parts of most rockets are produced in carbon-carbon materials. In the Soviet spacecraft 'Buran' many fuselage tubes are made of boron-aluminium composites. Carbon-aluminium is used for space mirrors and gas turbine blades. These are just a few examples of applications. Many participants at the Paisley conference suggested that the substantial Soviet experience in the field of composite materials should be distilled and presented in the form of a comprehensive reference publication. So the idea of the preparation and publication of a six volume work Soviet Advanced Composites Technology, edited by Academician J. Fridlyander and Professor I. Marshall, was born.

F.J. Balta-Calleja, A. Gonzalez Arche, T.A. Ezquerra, C. Santa Cruz, F. Batallan, B. Frick, G.A. Arche, E. Lopez Cabarcos, Structure and Properties of Ferroelectric Copolymers of Poly (vinylidene) Fluoride H.G. Kilian, T. Pieper Packing of Chain Segments: A Method for Describing X-Ray Patterns of Crystalline, Liquid Crystalline and Non-Crystalline Polymers K. Miyasaka PVA-Iodine Complexes: Formation, Structure and Properties

Continued and systematic analysis of the mechanics of flexible fibre assemblies dates from about 1945, although the growth of research into textiles after 1920 had included studies of fabric structure and the measurement of mechanical properties. The subject is thus a young one, although this NATO Advanced Study Institute is a sign of developing maturity. However there is an earlier tradition. Relevant, even if somewhat loosely connected, quotations can be found in the works of the engineers of the ancient civilisations, recurring during the llenaissance with Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo. But the glorious libk is with Euler and the Bernoulli family, with their theories of the mechanics of flexible slender rods. While mathematicians have admired the beauty of this work, the invention of elliptic integrals, and the grace of the different classes of planar elastica, it is in the technology of textile materials, composed of flexible fibres and yarns, that the subject has found its more direct application. All this, and much more such as Max Born's doctoral thesis, was brought to our attention in a delightful discourse by Milos Konopasek, who is not only fascinated by the mathematics of Euler and the modern movement of the solutions of bending curves from two dimensions into three by the use of the computer, but also feels a personal link through having lived and studied within sight of the scene of Euler's triumphs in St. Petersburg.

The production of multi layered thin films with sufficient reliability is a key technology for device fabrication in micro electronics. In the Co/Cu type multi layers, for example, magnetoresistance has been found as large as 80 % at 4. 2 K and 50 % at room temperature. In addition to such gigantic mag netoresistance, these multi layers indicate anti ferromagnetic and ferromag netic oscillation behavior with an increase in the thickness of the layers of the non magnetic component. These interesting properties of the new synthetic flmctional materials are attributed to their periodic and interracial structures at a microscopic level, although the origin of such peculiar features is not fully understood. Information on the surface structure or the number density of atoms in the near surface region may provide better insight. Amorphous alloys, frequently referred to as metallic glasses, are produced by rapid quenching from the melt. The second generation amorphous alloys, called "bulk amorphous alloys," have been discovered in some Pd based and Zr based alloy systems, with a super cooled liquid region at more than 120 K. In these alloy systems, one can obtain a sample thickness of several centime ters. Growing scientific and technological curiosity about the new amorphous alloys has focused on the fundamental factors, such as the atomic scale struc ture, which are responsible for the thermal stability with certain chemical compositions.

The IUTAM Symposium on Mechanical and Electromagnetic Waves in Structured Media took place at the University of Sydney from January 18- 22, 1999. It brought together leading researchers from eleven countries for a week-long meeting, with the aim of providing cross-links between the com- nities studying related problems involving elastic and electromagnetic waves in structured materials. After the meeting, participants were invited to submit articles based on their presentations, which were refereed and assembled to constitute these Proceedings. The topics covered here represent areas at the forefront of research intoelastic and electromagnetic waves. They include effect of nonlinearity, diffusion and multiple scattering on waves, as well as asymptotic and numerical techniques. Composite materials are discussed in depth, with example systems ranging fromdusty plasmas to a magneto-elastic microstructured system. Also included are studies of homogenisation, that field which seeks to determine equivalent homogeneous systems which can give equivalent wave properties to structured materials, and inverse problems, in which waves are used as a probe to infer structural details concerning scattering systems. There are also strong groups of papers on the localization of waves by random systems, and photonic and phononic band gap materials. These are being developed by analogue with semiconductors for electrons, and hold out the promise of enabling designers to control the propagation of waves through materials in novel ways. We would like to thank the other members of the Scientific Committee (A.

This volume includes 58 contributions to the 11th International Conference on Surface and Colloid Science, a highly successful conference sponsored by the International Association of Colloid and Interface Scientists and held in Iguassu Falls, Brazil, in September 2003. Topics covered are the following: Biocolloids and Biological Applications, Charged Particles and Interfaces, Colloid Stability, Colloidal Dispersions, Environmental Colloidal Science, Interfaces and Adsorption, Nanostructures and Nanotechnology, Self-Assembly and Structured Fluids, Surfactants and Polymers, Technology and Applications, Colloids and Surfaces in Oil Production. Surface and colloid science has acquired great momentum during the past twenty years and this volume is a good display of new results and new directions in this important area.

The broad field of conformational motion disorder in crystals is described with particular attention to the separation from the well known mesophases of liquid crystals and plastic crystals. Structure, thermodynamics and motion of a larger number of small and large molecules are discussed. Of special interest are the borderlines between smectic and high viscosity liquid crystals and condis crystals and between plastic crystals and condis crystals as complicated by pseudorotation, jumping between symmetry-related states and hindered rotation. This paper illustrates the wide distribution of conformational disorder in nature. Condis crystals and glasses ("Con"formational "Dis"order) can be found in small and large molecule systems made of organic, inorganic and biological compounds. The condis state was newly discovered only four years ago. In this article over 100 examples are discussed as example of the condis state. In many cases the condis state was suggested for the first time. Motion in the Condensed State, Condis Crystals and their Relation to Plastic Crystals, Condis Crystals of Flexible Macromolecules, Condis Crystals and their Relation to Liquid Crystals, Condis Crystals of Stiff Macromolecules.

The IUTAM Symposium on Rheology of Bodies with Defects was held in Beijing in September, 1997. It was aimed at the development of Rheology in Solid Mechanics. Rheology is classified in Applied Mechanics Review under fluid mechanics, however, in its broadest content as was envisaged in its earlier days, it covers the whole spectrum of material behavior from elasticity, plasticity, and fluid mechanics to gas dynamics. It was thought of as a branch of continuum mechanics, but emphasized the physical aspects of different materials, and frequently proceeded from basic physical principles. As the temperature rises, the distinction between solid and fluid, and the distinction between their micro-mechanical movements, become blurred. The physical description of such materials and their movements must be based on the thermodynamic principles of state variable theory; the classical division between solid and fluid mechanics disappears. Under the classification adopted by Applied Mechanics Reviews, the subjects dealt with in this symposium come closer to viscoelasticity and viscoplasticity, especially close to the subdivision of creep dealing with creep rupture. The symposium focused at building a bridge between macroscopic and microscopic research on damage and fracture behavior of defective bodies made of metal, polymer, composite and other viscoelastic materials. Two different approaches are presented at the symposium. The first is a continuum damage theory for time-dependent evolution of defects at the macro/meso/microscopic levels.

At the time when increasing numbers of chemists are being attracted by the fascination of supposedly easy computing and associated colourful imaging, this book appears as a counterpoint. The first part focuses on fundamental concepts of quantum chemistry, covering MCSCF theory, perturbation treatments, basis set developments, density matrices, wave function instabilities to correlation effects, and momentum space theory. The second part is devoted to more practical studies, ranging from the characterisation of exotic interstellar molecules, the accurate determination of spectroscopic constants, excited states structures and EPR parameters through photochemical and charge-transfer processes, cluster chemistry and fullerenes, muonium chemistry, to the possible prediction of the response of materials to electric fields in view of nonlinear optical applications. Audience: Graduate students and researchers whose work involves quantum chemistry, molecular physics, and materials modelling.

In many cases rheological measurements are carried out in the simplest of geometries, but the interpretation involved in obtaining the rheological parameters of the test fluids from these measurements is surprisingly complex. The purpose of this book is to emphasise the points on which most workers in the field agree, and to let the authors deal with the contentious points according to their own beliefs and experience. This work represents a summary of the current thought on rheological meas urement by experts in the various techniques. When making measurements and obtaining from them parameters that describe the flow behaviour of the test fluids, it is essential that the experimentalist understands the underlying theory and shortcomings of the measurement technique, that he is aware of the likely microstructure of the fluid, and that from this he can appreciate how the fluid and the measuring system will interact with each other. It is this interaction that gives both the required rheological parameters of the fluids and the artefacts that confuse the issue. This book covers the main rheological measurement techniques from capillary, slit and stretching flows to rotational and oscillatory rheometry in various geometries including sliding plate measurements. These topics are backed up by chapters on more practical aspects, such as commercial instruments, and on computer control and data acquisition. The chapters deal with the basic methods, how the measurements are taken, and what assumptions and interpretations are made to obtain valid data on the test fluids."

After epoxy resins and polyimides, cyanate esters arguably form the most well-developed group of high-temperature, thermosetting polymers. They possess a number of desirable performance characteristics which make them of increasing technological importance, where their somewhat higher costs are acceptable. The principal end uses for cyanate esters are as matrix resins for printed wiring board laminates and structural composites. For the electronics markets, the low dielectric loss characteristics, dimen sional stability at molten solder temperatures and excellent adhesion to conductor metals at temperatures up to 250 DegreesC, are desirable. In their use in aerospace composites, unmodified cyanate esters offer twice the frac ture toughness of multifunctional epoxies, while achieving a service tem perature intermediate between epoxy and bis-maleimide capabilities. Applications in radome construction and aircraft with reduced radar signatures utilize the unusually low capacitance properties of cyanate esters and associated low dissipation factors. While a number of commercial cyanate ester monomers and prepoly mers are now available, to date there has been no comprehensive review of the chemistry and recent technological applications of this versatile family of resins. The aims of the present text are to present these in a com pact, readable form. The work is primarily aimed at materials scientists and polymer technologists involved in research and development in the chemical, electronics, aerospace and adhesives industries. It is hoped that advanced undergraduates and postgraduates in polymer chemistry and technology, and materials science/technology will find it a useful introduc tion and source of reference in the course of their studies.

Toyiochi Tanaka, Mitsuhiro Shibayama, "Phase Transitions and related Phenomena of Polymer Gels", Akira Onuki "Theory of Phase Transition in Polymer Gels", Alexei Khokhlov, Sergei Starodybtzev, Valentina Vasilevskaya "Conformational Transitions in Polymer Gels: Theory and Experiment", Michal Ilavsky " Effect on Phase Transition on Swellingand Mechanical Behavior of Synthetic Hydrogels", Shozaburo Saito , M. Konno, H. Inomata "Volume Phase Transition of N-Alkylacrylamide Gels", Ronald Siegel "Hydrophobic Weak Polyelectrolyte Gels: Studies of Swelling Equilibria and Kinetics".

The modeling of minerals and silicated materials is a. difficult challenge faced by Solid StatePhysics, Quantum Chemistry and Molecular Dynamics communities. The difficulty of such a modeling is due to the wide diversity of elements, including heavy atoms, and types of bonding involved in such systems. Moreover, one has to consider infinite systems: either perfect cr- tals or glasses and melts. In the solid state a given chemical composition gives rise to numerous polymorphs, geometricallycloselyrelated. These polymorphs have very similar energies and related thermodynamical pr- erties which explain the complexity of their phase diagrams. The modeling of silicates and minerals covers a wide field of applications ranging from basic research to technology, from Solid State Physics to Earth and Planetary science. The use of modeling techniques yields information of different nature. In the case of chemical studies, we can mention inv- tigations on catalytic processes occurring on surfaces and in zeolite cages. These calculations find possible applications in chemical engineering, in particular in the oil industry