Langmuir—Blodgett (LB) films have been the subject of scientific curiosity for most of the twentieth century. However, interest has grown significantly since the 1970s — a direct result of the work of Hans Kuhn and colleagues on energy transfer in multilayer systems. This introduced the idea of molecular engineering, i.e., using the LB technique to position certain molecular groups at precise distances to others. In this way new thin film materials could be built up at the molecular level and the relationship between these artificial structures and the natural world explored.

There are already several books that cover LB and related thin films. So why another? My own background is in electronics. While I have been involved in LB film research I have spent many hours pondering on chemical formulae, struggling with biological nomenclature and trying to understand the finer points of thermodynamics. The scope of the subject is continuing to grow and anyone now starting work in the area must assimilate an enormous amount of information. My intention therefore has been to provide a gentle introduction to newcomers with an emphasis on the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary nature of the field.

Each chapter addresses a different issue. Chapter 1 describes the various bulk phases of matter and outlines physical principles that can be used to model these. Monolayer phases are introduced in chapter 2.