Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia, 12-22 August 1998

Program and compilation of abstracts from the conference entitled "NATO Advanced Study Institute: Materials Science of Carbides, Nitrides and Borides" held 12 - 22 August 1998 in St. Petersburg, Russia.

A survey of current research on a wide range of carbide, nitride and boride materials, covering the general issues relevant to the development and characterisation of a variety of advanced materials. Topics include structure and electronic properties, modeling, processing, high-temperature chemistry, oxidation and corrosion, mechanical behaviour, manufacturing and applications. The volume complements more specialised books on specific materials as well as more general texts on ceramics or hard materials, presenting a survey of materials research as a key to technological development. After decades of research, the materials are being used in electronics, wear resistant, refractory and other applications, but numerous new applications are possible. Roughly equal numbers of papers cover theoretical and experimental research in the general field of materials science of refractory materials. Audience: Researchers and graduate students in materials science and engineering.

Carbides, nitrides and borides are families of related refractory materials. Traditionally they have been employed in applications associated with engineering ceramics where either high temperature strength or stability is of primary importance. In recent years there has been a growing awareness of the interesting electrical, thermal and optical properties exhibited by these materials, and the fact that many can be prepared as monolithic ceramics, single crystals and thin films. In practical terms carbides, nitrides and borides offer the prospect of a new generation of semiconductor materials, for example, which can function at very high temperatures in severe environmental conditions. However, as yet, we have only a limited understanding of the detailed physics and chemistry of the materials and how the preparation techniques influence the properties. Under the auspices of the NATO Science Committee an Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) was held on the Physics and Chemistry of Carbides, Nitrides and Borides (University of Manchester, 18-22 September, 1989) in order to assess progress to date and identify the most promising themes and materials for future research. An international group of 38 scientists considered developments in 5 main areas: The preparation of powders, monolithic ceramics, single crystals and thin films; Phase transformations, microstructure, defect structure and mass transport; Materials stability; Theoretical studies; Electrical, thermal and optical properties of bulk materials and thin films.

A collection of papers from The American Ceramic Society's 35th International Conference on Advanced Ceramics and Composites, held in Daytona Beach, Florida, January 23-28, 2011. This issue includes papers presented in the 5th International Symposium on Nanostructured Materials and Nanotechnology on topics such as Nanotubes, Nanorods, Nanowires and other One-dimensional Structures; Nanostructured Membranes, Thin Films, and Functional Coatings; Synthesis, Functionalization and Processing of Nanostructured Materials; and Advanced Applications.