Description: The availability of synchrotron x-ray sources and the subsequent developments described in this book have led to substantial progress in our understanding of molecular ordering at liquid interfaces. This practical guide enables graduate students and researchers working in physics, chemistry, biology and materials science to understand and carry out experimental investigations into the basic physical and chemical properties of liquid surfaces and interfaces. The book examines the surfaces of bulk liquids, thin wetting films and buried liquid-liquid interfaces. It discusses experiments on simple and complex fluids, including pure water and organic liquids, liquid crystals, liquid metals, electrified liquid-liquid interfaces and interfacial monolayers of amphiphiles, nanoparticles, polymers and biomolecules. A detailed description of the apparatus and techniques required for these experiments is provided, and theoretical approaches to data analysis are described, including approximate methods such as the Master formula, the Born approximation, Parratt's algorithm and the Distorted Wave Approximation.
Brief description: Peter S. Pershan is Frank B. Baird, Jr Professor of Science in the Physics Department and the School of Engineering and Applied Science at Harvard University. In the early 1980s he helped produce the first synchrotron x-ray reflectometer for the study of the horizontal liquid surface. He has since led the liquid surface field in exploration of such diverse liquid surfaces as superfluid helium, water and liquid metals.
Review Quotes: "This modest-sized volume is a real treasure trove for researchers of liquid surfaces and interfaces. Peter Pershan, a founding father and a prime motive in the field of synchrotron x-ray studies of liquid surfaces, and Mark Schlossman, a leading expert in the field, present an admirable combination of a comprehensive, in-depth, exposition of the experimental methods and their underlying theory and data analysis approaches, with a lucid discussion of selected results obtained using these methods. The book's first part is an invaluable guide for researchers wishing to enter the field. The second part is a broad, insightful and inspiring panorama of the field's major achievements, which is a joy to read, even separately from the first part. Although the selection is, by necessity, personal, it reflects elegantly the authors' wisdom, breadth of view, and 30 years of experience. I have no doubt that this volume will find a place of honor on the bookshelves of all researchers in the field worldwide." - Professor Moshe Deutsch, Physics Department & Institute of Nanoscience and Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Israel