This volume deals with the interaction between moments of excited or radioactive nuclei and electromagnetic fields. The experimental techniques developed for the observation of this hyperfine interaction are governed by the lifetime of the nuc lear states in question. The dynamics of the interaction are reflected by the time dependence of the spatial distribution of the radioactive decay radiation. Basically, the experiments yield information on the energy shifts and/or splittings of the nuc lear levels. These quantities are determined essentially by the product of the nuc lear moment and the electromagnetic field acting at the site of the nucleus. Due to the strong decrease in the fields with distance, the measurements probe these fields within a highly localized region centered around the radioactive nuclei. Detailed experimental methods with numerous ramifications were developed in the early sixties. In the period which followed, the main emphasis was on excitation of short-lived nuclear states by means of pulsed particle accelerators, implantation of radioactive nuclei, and production of polarized a-unstable nuclei by nuclear re actions with polarized neutrons or particles. The seventies were a period of fruit ful applications directed to extensive studies of the moments of excited nuclear states on the one hand, and local internal fields on the other, resulting in far reaching information on atomic and solid-state properties. The organization of this Topics volume follows these main lines of research.

The effect which now bears his name, was discovered in 1958 by Rudolf Mössbauer at the Technical University of Munich. At first, this appeared to be a phenomenon related to nuclear energy levels that provided some information about excited state lifetimes and quantum properties. However, it soon became apparent that Mössbauer spectroscopy had applications in such diverse fields as general relativity, solid state physics, chemistry, materials science, biology, medical physics, archeology and art. It is the extreme sensitivity of the effect to the atomic environment around the probe atom as well as the ability to apply the technique to some interesting and important elements, most notably iron, that is responsible for the Mössbauer effect's extensive use. The present volume reviews the historical development of the Mössbauer effect, the experimental details, the basic physics of hyperfine interactions and some of the numerous applications of Mössbauer effect spectroscopy.

Nowadays, nanomaterials are attracting huge attentions not only from a basic research point of view but also for their potential applications. Since finding the structure-property-processing relationships can open new windows in the application of materials, the material characterizations play a crucial role in the research and development of materials science. The increasing demand for energy with the necessity to find alternative renewable and sustainable energy sources leads to the rapid growth in attention to energy materials. In this book, the results of some outstanding researches on synchrotron-based characterization of nanostructured materials related to energy applications are presented.

Nuclear Spectroscopy and Reactions, Part C covers information regarding the development of nuclear spectroscopy and its reactions, while emphasizing in-beam spectroscopy. This part covers gamma-ray spectroscopy and other relevant topics that are not discussed in the previous parts. Comprised of only two sections, this book first covers topics relevant to gamma-ray spectroscopy, such as the excitation and reorientation of coulombs; magnetic moments of excited fields; gamma rays from capture reactions; spectroscopy from fission; angular correlation methods; and lifetime measurements. The second section covers other topics that are relevant to nuclear spectroscopy, such as photonuclear reactions; nuclear spectroscopy from delayed particle emission; in-beam atomic spectroscopy; effects of extranuclear fields on nuclear radiations; and a guide to nuclear compilations. This book is written to primarily benefit graduate students who are engaged in research that concerns nuclear spectroscopy.

Two decades have passed since the original discovery of recoilless nuclear gamma resonance by Rudolf Mossbauer; the spectroscopic method based on this resonance effect - referred to as Mossbauer spectroscopy - has developed into a powerful tool in solid-state research. The users are chemists, physicists, biologists, geologists, and scientists from other disciplines, and the spectrum of problems amenable to this method has become extraordinarily broad. In the present volume we have confined ourselves to applications of Mossbauer spectroscopy to the area of transition elements. We hope that the book will be useful not only to non-Mossbauer special ists with problem-Oriented activities in the chemistry and physics of transition elements, but also to those actively working in the field of Mossbauer spectroscopy on systems (compounds as well as alloys) of transition elements. The first five chapters are directed to introducing the reader who is not familiar with the technique to the principles of the recoilless nuclear resonance effect, the hyperfme interactions between nuclei and electronic properties such as electric and magnetic fields, some essential aspects about measurements, and the evaluation of Moss bauer spectra. Chapter 6 deals with the interpretation of Mossbauer parameters of iron compounds. Here we have placed emphasis on the information about the electronic structure, in correlation with quantum chemical methods, because of its importance for chemical bonding and magnetic properties.