Optics for Materials Scientists

Book excerpt: This new volume will help materials scientists and engineers fully comprehend the principles of optics and optical phenomena and effectively utilize them for the design and fabrication of optical materials and devices. Materials science is an interdisciplinary field at the intersection of various fields, such as metallurgy, ceramics, solid-state physics, chemistry, chemical engineering, and mechanical engineering. Thus, many physicists, chemists, and engineers also work in materials science. Many materials scientists generally do not have a strong background in optics, and this book aims to fill that gap. The volume explains the fundamentals of optics legibly to nonspecialists and presents theoretical treatments for a variety of optical phenomena resulting from light-matter interactions. It covers thin film optics, interference lithography, and metal plasmonics as practical applications of optics for materials research. Each chapter of the book has a problem and reference section to facilitate the reader’s understanding. The book is aimed at assisting materials scientists and engineers who must be aware of optics and optical phenomena. This book will also be useful as a textbook for students in materials science, physics, chemistry, and engineering throughout their undergraduate and early graduate years.