Crystal engineering is an interdisciplinary area that cuts across the traditional subdivisions of chemistry. Fuelled by our increasingly precise understanding of the chemistry and properties of supramolecular systems, interest in the potential of the field has increased rapidly. The topics discussed in the 28 contributions in this book provide a state-of-the-art description of the field and offer new research ideas that, if pursued, will serve to strengthen the field at the interface between supramolecular chemistry and materials science.

This volume collects the state of the art in molecular materials. It collects the lecture notes of a series of lectures given by some of the best specialists in the field at the 2007 Erice International School of Crystallography -and also a NATO-ASI course-. The school developed along two parallel lines. First we established where we are in terms of modeling, design, synthesis and applications of crystalline solids with predefined properties. Second, we attempted to define current and possible futuristic lines of development in the quest for novel molecule-based materials with potential applications in magnetism, conductivity and superconductivity, non-linear optics (NLO), drug delivery, and nanotechnology.

This volume collects the state of the art in molecular materials. It collects the lecture notes of a series of lectures given by some of the best specialists in the field at the 2007 Erice International School of Crystallography -and also a NATO-ASI course-. The school developed along two parallel lines. First we stablished where we are in terms of modeling, design, synthesis and applications of crystalline solids with predefined properties. Second, we attempted to define current and possible futuristic lines of development in the quest for novel molecule-based materials with potential applications in magnetism, conductivity and superconductivity, non-linear optics (NLO), drug delivery, and nanotechnology.

Crystal engineering is an interdisciplinary area that cuts across the traditional subdivisions of chemistry. Fuelled by our increasingly precise understanding of the chemistry and properties of supramolecular systems, interest in the potential of the field has increased rapidly. The topics discussed in the 28 contributions in this book provide a state-of-the-art description of the field and offer new research ideas that, if pursued, will serve to strengthen the field at the interface between supramolecular chemistry and materials science.