Microstructural analysis by advanced and automated methods has allowed deformation microstructures to be quantified in terms of common structural parameters. This quantification has shown for a variety of materials and processing conditions that the microstructural evolution follows a universal pattern of grain subdivision from the macroscale to the nanometer scale. This microstructural evolution has been described empirically and in theoretical models based on general principles for the formation of dislocation structures during plastic deformation by slip. The similarity between the behavior of materials undergoing different deformation patterns forms the basis for future research and development encompassing traditional as well as new materials and processes.

Small metal and semiconductor particles with a size of a few nanometers are one of the important systems in modern materials science. Nanoparticles have found applications in many fields, ranging from catalysis to magnetic storage. In the present work, we discuss some of the methods to characterize the structure of nanoparticles using electron microscopy. We also discuss some of the exciting novel applications of nanoparticles in nanoelectronics and nanophotonics. Finally, we show that nanoparticles play an important role in producing atmospheric pollutants.

The present report attempts to make a historical review of the progress of the study of grain-boundary relaxation since 1947 to the present time. The outcomes of scientific experiments are gathered mainly from the measurements of internal friction and the accompanying anelastic effects in polycrystalline and bicrystal metals. Emphasis is placed on the information provided about the structure of the grain boundary, especially at elevated temperatures.The study was started with the confirmation of the viscous behavior of grain boundary in polycrystalline specimens, and a macroscopic viscous sliding model of grain-boundary relaxation was suggested. Analysis on the data concerning the activation energy associated with grain-boundary relaxation pointed out that the grain-boundary relaxation is correlated to an atomic diffusion process. Thus, the models of periodic grain-boundary structure consisting of "good" and "bad" regions were suggested.

Despite great differences in the physical and chemical properties of various ionic media, common methods for analyzing internal equilibrium provide useful and simple means for interpreting and predicting their behavior. The formalism of M. Pourbaix for analyzing the activities and solubilities of solutes in aqueous solutions has provided a foundation for interpreting corrosion, solubilities, and electrochemical phenomena for such solutions. Although perhaps not so obvious, the formalism of Kroger-Vink (K-V) in plotting the point defect concentrations for ionic solids derives from the same mathematical method. Likewise, the activities and solubilities for solutes in fused salts, e.g., fused sodium sulfate, can be treated by exactly the same sort of simultaneous resolution of equilibria for reactions in an ionic medium. Suggestions for extension of this analysis to cryolite-base fused salt solutions important to aluminum extraction are discussed.