EUROPEAN WHITE BOOK

MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR METALLFORSCHUNG STUTTGART20terials with each other, but more rigorous understandingbased on quantum theory is also necessary for today’sadvanced materials.Polymers find increasing number of applications everyyear. Recently, however, research into “traditional” polymershas declined. At present the polymer manufacturingindustry in Europe is undergoing major restructuring,which has led to severe cutbacks in companies’ Research& Development (R&D). To fill this gap, universities shouldincrease the amount of fundamental research they do intopolymeric materials.All life-forms are based on soft organic materials; polymerscience can therefore also be related to our understandingof biological materials, particularly carbon-based materials.Ceramics, on the other hand, are similar to hard biologicalmaterials such as teeth and bone, so that connectionsbetween these two fields will continue to grow aswell. We can expect many more functionally useful materialsto become available in the future by manipulating thechemistry and processing techniques of all these materials,and combining them in new ways.It is difficult to imagine modern society functioning todaywithout electronics. Electronic, optical, and photonic materialsplay essential roles in information technology, computing,and systems control, as well as electronic consumergoods. There is a great deal of commercial pressure todevelop new materials for use in these areas. Fundamentalresearch into electronic, photonic and optical materialsis therefore essential for the continued improvement andminiaturization of electronic and photonic devices.The following eleven sections summarise the state of theart for the different classes of materials. Expected evolutionaryand revolutionary developments are sketched ineach section.Carbon materials have received a lot of attention recentlythrough specific modifications such as graphite sheets(rolled up to form nanotubes or buckyballs) and syntheticdiamond. The basic principles of inorganic carbon chemistryare understood. These specific forms of carbon areexpected to be useful for a variety of applications in differentbranches of engineering. Hence it is very importantthat links between the science of carbon and itsapplications be strengthened.