A comprehensive and accessible introduction to the characterization of condensed materials The characterization of condensed materials is a crucial aspect of materials science. The science underlying this area of research and analysis is interdisciplinary, combining electromagnetic spectroscopy, surface and interface testing methods, physiochemical analysis methods, and more. All of this must be brought to bear in order to understand the relationship between microstructures and larger-scale properties of condensed matter. Characterization of Condensed Matter: An Introduction to Composition, Microstructure, and Surface Methods introduces the technologies involved in the characterization of condensed matter and their many applications. It incorporates more than a decades’ experience in teaching a successful undergraduate course in the subject and emphasizes accessibility and continuously reinforced learning. The result is a survey which promises to equip students with both underlying theory and real experimental instances of condensed matter characterization. Characterization of Condensed Matter readers will also find: Detailed treatment of techniques including Electromagnetic spectroscopy; X-ray diffraction; X-ray absorption; electron microscopy, surface and element analysis, and more Incorporation of concrete experimental examples for each technique Exercises at the end of each chapter to facilitate understanding Characterization of Condensed Matter is a useful reference for undergraduates and early-career graduate students seeking a foundation and reference for these essential techniques.