Electronic Properties of Materials

This text on the electrical, optical, magnetic, and thermal properties of materials stresses concepts rather than mathematical formalism. Suitable for advanced undergraduates, it is intended for materials and electrical engineers who want to gain a fundamental understanding of alloys, semiconductor devices, lasers, magnetic materials, and so forth. The book is organized to be used in a one-semester course; to that end each section of applications, after the introduction to the fundamentals of electron theory, can be read independently of the others. Many examples from engineering practice serve to provide an understanding of common devices and methods. Among the modern applications covered are: high-temperature superconductors, optoelectronic materials, semiconductor device fabrication, xerography, magneto-optic memories, and amorphous ferromagnetics. The fourth edition has been revised and updated with an emphasis on the applications sections, which now cover devices of the next generation of electronics.

From the reviews of the fourth edition:“This is an excellent book for materials and electrical engineers, as well as advanced students. This book is divided into five distinct and self-contained parts, which makes it easier for the reader to find information on a particular area of interest. … contains many applications and problems that help to bridge the gap between physics and engineering. … For practicing engineers, this would be a good reference book. It would also be useful for someone looking to gain an overall concept of device physics.” (Ishtiaque Ahmed, Optics & Photonics News, April, 2012)

Rolf E. Hummel is a Professor Emeritus of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Florida, Gainesville, USA. He received his Ph.D (Dr. rer.nat.) in 1963 from the University of Stuttgart, Germany and the Max-Planck Institute for Materials Research, also in Stuttgart. He has been at the University of Florida since graduation, only interrupted by Sabbatical stays in Japan, Korea, China, New Zealand, France, Vietnam, Germany, and Colorado. His previous publications include Optical Properties of Metals and Alloys (1971), Electro-and Thermo-Transport in Metals and Alloys (ed.),(1977), the two-volume Handbook of Optical Properties (ed.), (1996), and Understanding Materials Science 2nd Ed. (2004). His books are widely appraised for their easy understandability.