Electro-optic devices based on doped wide-band materials are present in industrial uses, in military applications and in everyday life. Whether one engages in laser surgery with a neodymium-Y AG laser or one communicates overseas using optical fibers, the development of these materials is both scientifically and commercially of great interest. Much of the most innovative work has been done in the last 15 years in this area. A minor revolution in optical fiber communications has occurred with the development of erbium-doped fiber amplifiers. Solid-state laser development shifted into high-gear with the theoretical and experimental study of doubly-doped garnet lasers. Recent developments on semiconductor laser arrays are making diode pumped solid-state lasers commercially feasible. The purpose of this book is to detail these developments and to point out that many of the same underlying physical processes control advances in several diverse applications. For example, the basic science of energy transfer will be discussed by Zharikov et al. and Rotman for energy transfer and dopant-defect interactions, respectively; it will also be crucial in understanding cerium-doped scintilla tors, neodymium-chromium lasers, and up-conversion fiber lasers. As another example, phonon-induced non-radiative relaxation will appear in every chapter in this book.

This volume builds upon the successful book Lanthanide Luminescence published in the Springer Series on Fluorescence in 2011. Since its publication, the field of lanthanide spectroscopy and the areas in which the light emission properties of the f-elements are used have experienced substantial advances. The luminescence properties of lanthanide ions make them unique candidates for a myriad of optical applications. This book highlights and reviews the latest research in areas ranging from luminescence thermometry to imaging, sensing and photonic applications of these fascinating elements. Each chapter provides a comprehensive introduction to a specific area of application of lanthanide luminescence and extensively reviews seminal papers and current research literature. Given its interdisciplinary scope, the book appeals to scientists and advanced students in physics, chemistry and materials science interested in compounds and materials with optical properties.

Explains the mutual influences between the physical and dynamic processes in solids and their lasing properties. This book provides insight into the physics and engineering of solid state lasers by integrating information from several disciplines, including solid state physics, materials science, photophysics, and dynamic processes in solids.

The discovery by J. G. Bednorz and K. A. Mtllier in 1986 that the superconducting state can exist in oxides at temperatures above 30 K stimulated research in the field of superconductivity and opened up a new field of research. Within a few years a large number of cuprate superconductors with transition temperatures well above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen have been found. The possibility of using liquid nitrogen as coolant re-stimulated interest in power applications of supercon ductivity. In this book an overview of the known high-Te superconductors and their physical properties is presented. Aspects related to conductor fabrication and high-current applications are emphasised. The material should be suitable for use in graduate level courses on superconductivity. Researchers in the field may profit from the large number of tables and references describing its status at the end of 1997. An introduction to high-To superconductivity must be based on the fundamental physical principles of normal-state electrical conductivity and the well-known characteristics of conventional superconductors. In Chapter 2 this background is provided. Crystal structures, anisotropic properties and general trends of the critical temperatures of the cuprate superconductors are described in Chapters 3 and 4. The processing of superconductor powders addressed in Chapter 5 affects considerably the current-carrying capacity of high-T. wires. In Chapter 6 several fabrication techniques for superconducting wires are described. In addition, the factors limiting the transport critical currents ofhigh-Te wires are discussed.

Nanostructured Materials: Selected Synthesis Methods, Properties and Applications presents several important recent advances in synthesis methods for nanostructured materials and processing of nano-objects into macroscopic samples, such as nanocrystalline ceramics. This book will not cover the whole spectrum of possible synthesis techniques, which would be limitless, but it presents especially interesting highlights in the domains of research of the editors. Subjects that are covered include the following: *"chimie douce" approaches for preparation of a large variety of nanostructured materials, including metals, alloys, semiconductors and oxides; *hydrothermal synthesis with water as solvent and reaction medium can be specifically adapted to nanostructured materials; *"electrospraying" as a powerful new route for the preparation of nanoparticles, especially of oxides for electroceramics; *nanoparticles processed into nanostructured ceramics, by using dynamic compaction techniques; *applications of nanostructured materials. This book complements the previous volume in this series (P. Knauth, J. Schoonman, eds., Nanocrystalline Metals and Oxides: Selected Properties and Applications, Kluwer, Boston, 2002).

Developments in lasers continue to enable progress in many areas such as eye surgery, the recording industry and dozens of others. This book presents citations from the book literature for the last 25 years and groups them for ease of access which is also provided by subject, author and titles indexes.

The past five years have witnessed some dramatic developments in the general area of ferroelectric thin films materials and devices. Ferroelectrics are not new materials by any stretch ofimagination. Indeed, they have been known since the early partofthis century and popular ferroelectric materials such as Barium Titanate have been in use since the second world war. In the late sixties and seventies, a considerable amountofresearch and development effort was made to create a solid state nonvolatile memory using ferroelectrics in a vary simple matrix-addressed scheme. These attempts failed primarily due to problems associated with either the materials ordue to device architectures. The early eighties saw the advent of new materials processing approaches, such as sol-gel processing, that enabled researchers to fabricate sub-micron thin films of ferroelectric materials on a silicon substrate. These pioneering developments signaled the onsetofa revival in the areaofferroelectric thin films, especially ferroelectric nonvolatile memories. Research and development effort in ferroelectric materials and devices has now hit a feverish pitch, Many university laboratories, national laboratories and advanced R&D laboratories oflarge IC manufacturers are deeply involved in the pursuit of ferroelectric device technologies. Many companies worldwide are investing considerable manpower and resources into ferroelectric technologies. Some have already announced products ranging from embedded memories in micro controllers, low density stand-alone memories, microwave circuit elements, andrf identification tags. There is now considerable optimism that ferroelectric devices andproducts will occupy a significant market-share in the new millennium.

The book is focused on the use of functional oxide and nitride films to enlarge the application range of MEMS (microelectromechanical systems), including micro-sensors, micro-actuators, transducers, and electronic components for microwaves and optical communications systems. Applications, emerging applications, fabrication technology and functioning issues are presented and discussed. The book covers the following topics: Part A: Applications and devices with electroceramic-based MEMS: Chemical microsensors Microactuators based on thin films Micromachined ultrasonic transducers Thick-film piezoelectric and magnetostrictive devices Pyroelectric microsystems RF bulk acoustic wave resonators and filters High frequency tunable devices MEMS for optical functionality Part B: Materials, fabrication technology, and functionality: Ceramic thick films for MEMS Piezoelectric thin films for MEMS Materials and technology in thin films for tunable high frequency devices Permittivity, tunability and loss in ferroelectrics for reconfigurable high frequency electronics Microfabrication of piezoelectric MEMS Nano patterning methods for electroceramics Soft lithography emerging techniques The book is addressed to engineers, scientists and researchers of various disciplines, device engineers, materials engineers, chemists, physicists and microtechnologists who are working and/or interested in this fast growing and highly promising field. The publication of this book follows a Special Issue on electroceramic-based MEMS that was published in the Journal of Electroceramics at the beginning of 2004. The ten invited papers of that special issue were adapted by the authors into chapters of the present book and five additional chapters were added.

Nanocomposites have been receiving more and more attention given the improvement of synthesis techniques and the availability of powerful characterization techniques. The aim of the book is to introduce nanocomposite materials using a broad range of inorganic and organic solids. It also presents recent and not very common developments in especially spectroscopic characterization techniques, including Mössbauer, EXAFS, NMR. This should make the book attractive for a broad range of readers, including chemists and physicists.