Includes bibliographical references and index.

Why study the foundations for nanoscience and nanotechnology? -- Time-dependent and time-independent Schrödinger equations -- Solving the time-independent Schrödinger equation -- Applications to systems with many electrons -- The basics of thermodynamics -- Surface thermodynamics -- The work function -- Understanding interactions between surfaces -- Basic statistical concepts -- Partition functions -- Fluctuations in closed and open systems -- Measuring concentration changes -- The principles of absoption and emission of light -- Molecular spectroscopy -- Application of fluorescence microscopy -- Optical properties of relevance to nanomaterials -- Epilogue and acknowledgments -- Problems and references.

"This book acts as a stepping-stone to working in or understanding a new world in nanoscience and nanotechnology, opening the door for students and practitioners to develop projects that depend on this understanding. The book can be used at three levels: as an introduction to the nanoscale world, as a resource for understanding the foundations, thereby allowing for moving forward to working in this area, and as a source of recent research in the areas that illustrate foundational principles"-- Provided by publisher.