Modern Materials and the Solid State—Crystals, Polymers, and Alloys

While chemical reactions in gases and liquids are essential to the understanding of chemistry, the chemistry of solid-state materials characterizes most of the interactions we have with matter on a daily basis. Chemists take advantage of the complexity of solids to engineer new materials, including nanoparticles, polymers, and advanced metal alloys. These new materials have many potential applications in sensors, advanced drug delivery systems, and space exploration. Today, modern materials are following a heritage—one that can be traced back to earlier civilizations—in which the properties of solids are manipulated to advance human needs.