Out of the Crystal Maze: Chapters from the History of Solid-State Physics

. Ed(s): Hoddeson, Lillian; Braun, Ernest; Teichmann, Jurgen; Weart, Spencer R.

ISBN 10: 019505329X / ISBN 13: 9780195053296

Published by OUP USA, 1992

About this Item

Focuses on the field of solid-state physics - also referred to as condensed matter physics - which grew to maturity between 1920 and 1960. The history of some exciting developments is told here in an easy-to-follow text, accessible to general readers, while maintaining standards of high scholarship. Editor(s): Hoddeson, Lillian; Braun, Ernest; Teichmann, Jurgen; Weart, Spencer R. Num Pages: 728 pages, halftones, line illustrations. BIC Classification: 3JJG; 3JJH; 3JJP; PDX; PHFC; PHK. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational. Dimension: 244 x 166 x 43. Weight in Grams: 1589. . 1992. Illustrated. hardcover. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9780195053296

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Out of the Crystal Maze: Chapters from the History of Solid-State Physics
• Publisher: OUP USA
• Publication Date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 019505329X
• ISBN 13: 9780195053296
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

This landmark work chronicles the origin and evolution of solid state physics, which grew to maturity between 1920 and 1960. The book examines the early roots of the field in industrial, scientific and artistic efforts and traces them through the 1950s, when many physicists around the world recognized themselves as members of a distinct subfield of physics research centered on solids. The book opens with an account of scientific and social developments that preceded the discovery of quantum mechanics, including the invention of new experimental means for studying solids and the establishment of the first industrial laboratories. The authors set the stage for the modern era by detailing the formulation of the quantum field theory of solids. The core of the book examines six major themes: the band theory of solids; the phenomenology of imperfect crystals; the puzzle of the plastic properties of solids, solved by the discovery of dislocations; magnetism; semiconductor physics; and collective phenomena, the context in which old puzzles such as superconductivity and superfluidity were finally solved. All readers interested in the history of science will find this absorbing volume an essential resource for understanding the emergence of contemporary physics.

About the Author

Lillian Hoddeson is at University of Illinois. Ernst Braun is at Institut für Sozio-Okonomische Entwicklungsforschung.