are intended to fill the gap between a manufacturer's handbook, and review articles that highlight the latest scientific developments. A fourth volume will deal with techniques for specimen handling, beam artifacts, and depth profiling. It will provide a compilation of methods that have proven useful for specimen handling and treatment, and it will also address the common artifacts and problems associated with the bombardment of solid sur faces by photons, electrons, and ions. A description will be given of methods for depth profiling. Surface characterization measurements are being used increasingly in di verse areas of science and technology. We hope that this series will be useful in ensuring that these measurements can be made as efficiently and reliably as possible. Comments on the series are welcomed, as are suggestions for volumes on additional topics. C. J. Powell Gaithersburg, Maryland A. W. Czandema Golden, Colorado D. M. Hercules Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania T. E. Madey New Brunswick, New Jersey J. T. Yates, Jr.