Research in solid state chemistry and materials is undergoing tremendous growth while at the same time the character of the research is changing due in large part from the need to explore new classes of technologically important materials made possible by the advent of new tools for characterization and novel solid state synthetic strategies. This meeting will bring together experts in area related to designing, synthesizing, and optimizing the properties of advanced materials that exhibit specific properties such as magnetic, optical/electronic, and reactivity/catalytic properties. The use of current techniques for studying structure-property relationships will be emphasized. A broad range of inorganic, solid-state and materials chemists will be informed about the latest advances in these fields. %%% New materials classes of high technological importance are emerging at a rapid rate due in large part to the development of new solid-state synthetic strategies and novel ways to characterize properties and structure-property relationships. Specific materials that are high priority currently include magnetic, optical/electronic, and reactive compounds exhibiting catalytic properties. They are of high to industrial firms searching for new catalysts, semiconductors and superconductors. Complementary to these synthetic efforts, and an integral part of solid-state chemistry is the development of powerful structure determining tools for the characterization of structure-property relationships exhibited by new classes of materials. ***
