This volume contains the most important lecture notes by experts from condensed matter, particle physics and cosmology and is a MUST for young researchers and graduate students.While covering frontier developments in condensed matter physics, particle physics and cosmology, this school aims to bring out their interdisciplinary nature by emphasizing certain topics such as spontaneous symmetry breaking and renormalization group through a pedagogical set of lectures. In the condensed matter area, the school covered, in the first two weeks, experimental aspects of high temperature superconductivity and its possible applications.

The ICTP has been holding a Summer Workshop in High Energy Physics and Cosmology since 1981. The primary goal of these workshops is to bring together active physicists from around the world, and to provide a platform where the frontier developments in the field are presented by leading workers. The atmosphere for the workshop was active and stimulating and each area was represented by leading physicists in the field.