The series of texts on Classical Theoretical Physics is based on the highly successful series of courses given by Walter Greiner at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Intended for advanced undergraduates and beginning graduate students, the volumes in the series provide not only a complete survey of classical theoretical physics but also an enormous number of worked examples and problem to show students clearly how to apply the abstract principles to realistic problems.

One of the most exciting developments in modern physics has been the discovery of the new class of oxide materials with high superconducting transition temperature. Systems with Tc well above liquid nitrogen temperature are already a reality and higher Tc's are anticipated. Indeed, the idea of a room-temperature superconductor, which just a short time ago was considered science fiction, appears to be a distinctly possible outcome of materials research. To address the need to train students and scientists for research in this exciting field, Jeffrey W. Lynn and colleagues at the University of Maryland, College Park, as well as other superconductivity experts from around the U.S., taught a graduate-level course in the fall of 1987, from which the chapters in this book were drawn. Subjects included are: Survey of superconductivity (J. Lynn).- The theory of type-II superconductivity (D. Belitz).- The Josephson effect (P. Ferrell).- Crystallography (A. Santoro).- Electronic structure (C.P. Wang).- Magnetic properties and interactions (J. Lynn).- Synthesis and diamagnetic properties (R. Shelton).- Electron pairing (P. Allen).- Superconducting devices (F. Bedard).- Superconducting properties (J. Crow, N.-P. Ong).