ABSTRACT
In many disciplines, surfaces are more important than bulk structures. Mechanical interac-tion between parts involves friction and wear between surfaces; many chemical interactions take place on surfaces (including catalysis); and most modern electronic devices consist of thin layers of materials laid down in intricate patterns on the surface of substrates. Similarly, the appearance of an object is dominated by its surface characteristics, texture, and coating. In these and many other cases, scientists and engineers need to characterize surfaces and the ways in which they are modified through fabrication and use. Imaging plays an important role in obtaining information as well as presenting it for human visualization and analysis. As pointed out in Chapter 2, human vision is well adapted to interpreting images of surfaces, and presentation of various types of data rendered as a surface is a common data-visualization tool.
