The field of cluster science is currently attracting considerable interest, not only from a fundamental standpoint, but also through its future applications to electronic, optical, magnetic, and other devices. Synthesizing specific clus- ters as a unit of useful nanostructures or controlling them as an assembly of nanocomposites is one of the ultimate purposes in this field. In order to understand how to synthesize individual clusters and t_o investigate physical properties, chemical reactions, structural stability, response to external fields, aggregation, phase transition, and other aspects...

In nanotechnology to date, much emphasis is placed on the creation of the nanostructures by means of micro- and atomic manipulations. This research ?eld has been highly respected and promoted by the society, polytics, and economics. Rapid progress in this ?eld has been greatly stimulated by more fundamental study on nano- and micromaterials. In this respect, the sci- tists and engineers in di?erent ?elds of physics, chemistry, materials science, and information technology including experimentalists, theorists, and also researchers doing computer simulations have collaborated to form a new...

This textbook introduces modern techniques based on computer simulation to study materials science. Readers will gain sufficient knowledge to begin theoretical studies in modern materials research. This second edition includes a lot of recent theoretical techniques in materials research.