Providing a comprehensive review of the state-of-the-art advanced research in the field, Polymer Physics explores the interrelationships among polymer structure, morphology, and physical and mechanical behavior. Featuring contributions from renowned experts, the book covers the basics of important areas in polymer physics while projecting into the future, making it a valuable resource for students and chemists, chemical engineers, materials scientists, and polymer scientists as well as professionals in related industries.

Polymers are substances containing a large number of structural units joined by the same type of linkage. These substances often form into a chain-like structure. Starch, cellulose, and rubber all possess polymeric properties. Today, the polymer industry has grown to be larger than the aluminium, copper and steel industries combined. Polymers already have a range of applications that far exceeds that of any other class of material available to man. Current applications extend from adhesives, coatings, foams, and packaging materials to textile and industrial fibres, elastomers, and structural plastics. Polymers are also used for most composites, electronic devices, biomedical devices, optical devices, and precursors for many newly developed high-tech ceramics. This book presents leading-edge research in this rapidly-changing and evolving field.

For one and a half decades, the application of positron annihilation to condensed-matter physics concentrated on the study of the Fermi surfaces of metals and alloys. As other, often more powerful, techniques for performing this type of study were developed, it appeared that condensed-matter positron physics was going to be relegated to being a niche interest. However, the situation changed dramatically when it was found that measurements of positron annihilation in metals were sensitive to the structures of well-known defects. This discovery, and subsequent research made it a major tool in materials science.