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Physics at surfaces
BOOK REVIEWS Physics at Surfaces. By ANDREWZANGWILL.Cambridge Univ. Press, London/New York, 454 pp. $69.50. This new book entitled "Physics at Surfaces" is a welcome addition to the library of most practitioners of surface science and of those majoring in solid state physics who would like to extend their knowledge in this special subfield of the discipline. The author has done a great service to the community by approaching the subject from the physics point of view. It starts with a historical sketch which is most educational. The text is divided into two parts: one exposing the properties of clean surfaces and the other focusing on the properties of adsorbed layers. The surface thermodynamic section leads the way followed by an exposure of modern surface chemical analysis. Then, discussions of crystal structure and electronic structure follow, The review of surface phase transition, elementary excitations, and optical properties round up the first part of the book. Each section contains interesting and important topics of surface science and there is a judicious mixture of experiment and theory. From the viewpoint of an experimentalist the various sections are perhaps a bit strong on the theory side. Nevertheless, they show the unique perspective of the author. None of the chapters gives a detailed account of the information available in each particular subfield of surface science; rather they give examples and samples of experimental data and theoretical approaches, All and all the book provides an excellent survey of the present state-ofthe-art in surface physics. The second part follows the same philosophy; physisorption and chemisorption are discussed followed by crystal structure and phase transitions. Then the electronic structure and the dynamics at surfaces ranging from energy transfer to surface reactions are discussed. Finally, there is an excellent chapter on epitaxial growth on surfaces. The book is most informative and is a very good introduction for physicists starting their studies in the field of surface science. It is also a welcome introductory text for chemists and engineers who are interested in this particular approach to surface science. The book is well written, readable, and very educational. It is certainly recommended to students interested in surface science.
Crystals in Gels and Liesegang Rings. By HEINZ K. HENISCH. Cambridge Univ. Press, London/New York, May 1988. 197 pp. $54.50. Professor Heinz K. Henisch, Pennsylvania State University, has written a most useful and timely book on singlecrystal growth in gels and the associated phenomenon of Liesegang Rings. There is an introduction to the history of crystal growth by the gel method, and a basic description of and reference to the issues of purity and doping. After a discussion of gel preparation, gelling mechanism, and some properties of gels, in particular silica hydrogels, the author proceeds to an incisive review of crystal growth mechanisms and the functions of gels in such processes. He considers some basic elements of nucleation, with the main point that the presence of the gels suppresses and controls nucleation, in part due to the restricted pore size in the gel available for that process. The method of crystal growth in gels has much to be recommended, in particular the possibilities of controlled growth and of obtaining excellent crystals of reasonable size, even though the length of time necessary for such achievements is quite long (days). The method may find commercial utilization in the future but its proselytization is not the author's main intent. The author is clearly very fond of the last topic of Liesegang Rings, not only as an example of crystal growth in gels but also as a topic which has been analyzed extensively from many different points of view. Professor Henisch presents an interesting historical summary with a charming personal glimpse of Liesegang and proceeds with a fair summary of some approaches including those of Ostwald, supersaturation models, sol coagulation models, and some newer approaches based on chemical instabilities. He concludes with a discussion of certain experiments, in good part his own, to present his view of what is known in this field and is ready to be built upon. The book is extremely well written and a delight to read. It is highly recommended for experts as well as for readers with primary interests in other fields who wish, in selected readings, to gain an introduction to this fascinating field. There is a very useful list of references.
JOHN Ross G. A. SOMORJAI
Department of Chemistry University of California Berkeley, California 94720
Department of Chemistry Stanford University Stanford, California 94305
301
JournalofColloidandInterfaceScience,Vol. 128,No. 1, March1, 1989
0021-9797/89 $3.00 Copyright© 1989byAcademicPress,Inc. Allfightsofreproductionin any formreserved.
Crystals in Gels and Liesegang Rings. By HEINZ K. HENISCH. Cambridge Univ. Press, London/New York, May 1988. 197 pp. $54.50. Professor Heinz K. Henisch, Pennsylvania State University, has written a most useful and timely book on singlecrystal growth in gels and the associated phenomenon of Liesegang Rings. There is an introduction to the history of crystal growth by the gel method, and a basic description of and reference to the issues of purity and doping. After a discussion of gel preparation, gelling mechanism, and some properties of gels, in particular silica hydrogels, the author proceeds to an incisive review of crystal growth mechanisms and the functions of gels in such processes. He considers some basic elements of nucleation, with the main point that the presence of the gels suppresses and controls nucleation, in part due to the restricted pore size in the gel available for that process. The method of crystal growth in gels has much to be recommended, in particular the possibilities of controlled growth and of obtaining excellent crystals of reasonable size, even though the length of time necessary for such achievements is quite long (days). The method may find commercial utilization in the future but its proselytization is not the author's main intent. The author is clearly very fond of the last topic of Liesegang Rings, not only as an example of crystal growth in gels but also as a topic which has been analyzed extensively from many different points of view. Professor Henisch presents an interesting historical summary with a charming personal glimpse of Liesegang and proceeds with a fair summary of some approaches including those of Ostwald, supersaturation models, sol coagulation models, and some newer approaches based on chemical instabilities. He concludes with a discussion of certain experiments, in good part his own, to present his view of what is known in this field and is ready to be built upon. The book is extremely well written and a delight to read. It is highly recommended for experts as well as for readers with primary interests in other fields who wish, in selected readings, to gain an introduction to this fascinating field. There is a very useful list of references.
JOHN Ross G. A. SOMORJAI
Department of Chemistry University of California Berkeley, California 94720
Department of Chemistry Stanford University Stanford, California 94305
301
JournalofColloidandInterfaceScience,Vol. 128,No. 1, March1, 1989
0021-9797/89 $3.00 Copyright© 1989byAcademicPress,Inc. Allfightsofreproductionin any formreserved.