The first of a two-volume set differing from other treatments of synchrotron radiation by a narrow focus on surface science developments. Techniques are covered in four sections (after an overview) on absorption, photoemission spectroscopy, ion spectroscopy, and diffraction and scattering. Annotatio

In the summer of 1972, I had the privilege and responsibility of organizing a Gordon Conference on the "High-Energy Spectroscopy of Solids." The Thursday evening session focused on future directions for high-energy spectroscopy. The possibilities associated with synchrotron radiation for future research became a central issue. I was asked to choose the members of the panel and chair the session. Although all five members of the panel went on to have distinguished careers using synchrotron radiation, at the time some of them were skeptical about the future role of synchrotron radiation sources...