Serving as a general introduction to surface and interface science, the second editoin of this book focuses on basic concepts rather than specific details; on intuitive understanding of interfacial systems and phenomena rather than learning facts. The text reflects the diverse and interdisciplinary nature of surface science, integrating basic chemistry and physics with engineering and technological applications — the discussion includes fundamentals such as thermodynamics of interfaces as well as applied topics such as wetting, friction, and lubrication. The most important techniques and methods are introduced, allowing readers to apply simple models to their own scientific problems.

From the Preface: “Interface science has changed significantly during the last two decades. This is partially due to scientific breakthroughs. For example, the invention of scanning probe microscopy and refined diffraction methods allow us to look at interfaces under `wet' conditions with an unprecedented accuracy. This change is also due to the greatly increased community of interfacial scientists...Traditionally, the community tended to be split into `dry' surface scientists (mainly physicists working under ultrahigh vacuum conditions) and `wet' surface scientists (mainly colloid chemists). In addition, engineers dealing with applications like coatings, adhesion, or lubrication, formed a third community. This differentiation is significantly less pronounced and interface science has become a really interdisciplinary field of research...”

Target Audience: Upper-level students of chemistry, physics, chemical and biomedical engineering, and materials science, as well as researchers new to surface and interface science.

Table of Contents:

Introduction

Liquid Surfaces

Thermodynamics of Interfaces

The Electric Double Layer

Effects at Charged Interfaces

Surface Forces

Contact Angle Phenomena and Wetting

Solid Surfaces

Adsorption

Surface Modification

Friction, Lubrication, and Wear

Surfactants, Micelles, Emulsions, and Foams

Thin Films on Surfaces of Liquids

Solutions to Exercises

Appendix A: Analysis of Diffraction Patterns

Appendix B: Symbols and Abbreviations

Bibliography

Index