This book gives an overview of recent advances in the science and technology of polymeric and organic materials. Speciality polymers and novel polymeric catalysts have been objects of intense research during the last decade; they have had great influence in the chemical industry and have spawned a variety of new application areas. At the same time, novel investigative methods such as atomic force microscopy and computer simulation have provided new insight into some of the fundamental principles of polymer science. In a systematic and comprehensive manner, each chapter of this book gives a...

This book has been written to introduce readers to group theory and its ap- plications in atomic physics, molecular physics, and solid-state physics. The first Japanese edition was published in 1976. The present English edi- tion has been translated by the authors from the revised and enlarged edition of 1980. In translation, slight modifications have been made in. Chaps. 8 and 14 to update and condense the contents, together with some minor additions and improvements throughout the volume. The authors cordially thank Professor J. L. Birman and Professor M. Car- dona, who encouraged them to...