---

This is the first text to cover all aspects of solution processed functional oxide thin-films. Chemical Solution Deposition (CSD) comprises all solution based thin- film deposition techniques, which involve chemical reactions of precursors during the formation of the oxide films, i. e. sol-gel type routes, metallo-organic decomposition routes, hybrid routes, etc. While the development of sol-gel type processes for optical coatings on glass by silicon dioxide and titanium dioxide dates from the mid-20th century, the first CSD derived electronic oxide thin films, such as lead zirconate titanate, were prepared in the 1980´s. Since then CSD has emerged as a highly flexible and cost-effective technique for the fabrication of a very wide variety of functional oxide thin films. Application areas include, for example, integrated dielectric capacitors, ferroelectric random access memories, pyroelectric infrared detectors, piezoelectric micro-electromechanical systems, antireflective coatings, optical filters, conducting-, transparent conducting-, and superconducting layers, luminescent coatings, gas sensors, thin film solid-oxide fuel cells, and photoelectrocatalytic solar cells. In the appendix detailed "cooking recipes" for selected material systems are offered.

---

Introduction.- Solution Chemistry; Simple alskoxide based precursor systems; Carboxylate based precursor systems; Single-source precursors; Acqueos Precursor Systems; Solution Synthesis Strategies.- Analytical Methods; Introduction; Thermal Analysis; NMR Sepctroscopy; EXAFS; Other Methods (XRM, SEM,TEM;scattering methods at nanocrystalline films); Spin-Coating; Dip Coating; Inkjet Printing and Other Direct Writing Methods(dip point and imprint techniques); Chemical Bath Deposition; Polymer Assisted Deposition.- Processing and Crystallization; Thermodynamics and Heating Processes; Material Systems Dominated by Heterogeneous Nucleation; Material Systems Dominated by Homogeneous Nucleation; Low Temperature Processing; Epitaxial Films; Powder Assisted Film Fabrication; UV-and E-Beam Direct Patterning of Photosensitive CSD Films; Template Controlled Growth.- Functions and Applications; Introduction; Integrated Capacitors; Base Metal Electrodes; Polar Oxide Films for MEMS Applications;Conducting Films and Electrodes; Transparent conducting oxides; Superconducting Films; Porous Films for Gas Sensors; Luminescent Fims.- Appendix; Synthesis for Standard material Systems.

---

Rainer Waser is Professor of Physics at the faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology of the RWTH Aachen University and Director at the Institute of Solid State Research (IFF) at the HGF Research Center Jülich, Germany. In 1984, he received his PhD in physical chemistry at the University of Darmstadt, and worked at the Philips Research Laboratory, Aachen, until he was appointed professor in 1992. His research group is focused on fundamental aspects of electronic materials and on such integrated devices as non-volatile memories, specifically ferroelectric memories, logic devices, sensors and actuators.

---