Mössbauer spectroscopy in clay science

This is the introductory paper of the Mössbauer Symposium of the 11th International Clay Conference (ICC '97), held in Ottawa, June 15–21, 1997. Its purpose is to introduce the Symposium and Mössbauer spectroscopy to the non-expert. We answer the questions: “What is Mössbauer spectroscopy and how does it work?”, “How is it particularly useful in clay and soil science?”, and “What are its limitations and why is it not more widespread as a technique?”. We start from the basics and describe all the physical and chemical concepts that are required to perform correct spectral analysis and interpretation in order to give a complete and up to date treatment so that one may appreciate and use published Mössbauer results. A complete bibliography, including electronic sources, is given.