Modern Microwave Methods in Solid-State Inorganic Materials Chemistry: From Fundamentals to Manufacturing

The significant advances in the area of solid-state microwave (MW) synthesis are studied. MWs are broadly regarded as those electromagnetic waves which are situated between infrared and radio wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum, with wavelengths between 0.01 and 1 m, corresponding to frequencies between 0.3 and 300 GHz. MW radiation interacts directly with the reaction components, so the sample alone is heated with minimal need for energy to be expended in heating furnaces, containment materials, and the sample environment. While absorption of MWs in solid and liquid samples is frequency dependent, it is, in effect, nonquantized. Instead, the material behaves as though reacting to a high-frequency electric field. Manipulating MW penetration depth will be vital to develop the flow processes that underpin manufacturing and mass production.