Derived from lectures at the University of Freiburg, this textbook introduces solid-state physics as well as the physics of liquids, liquid crystals and polymers. The five chapters deal with the key characteristics of condensed matter: structures, susceptibilities, molecular fields, currents, and dynamics. The author strives to present and explain coherently the terms and concepts associated with the main properties and characteristics of condensed matter, while minimizing attention to extraneous details. As a result, this text provides the firm and broad basis of understanding that...

Polymer physics is a key part of macromolecular science. This textbook presents the elements of this important branch of materials science in the style of a series of lecture. The main focus lays on the concepts, rather than on experimental techniques and theoretical methods. Written for graduate students of physics, materials science and chemical engineering, as well as for researchers in academia and industry entering this field, the book introduces and discusses the basic phenomena that lead to the peculiar physical properties of polymeric systems.

After more than ten years...