With an informal and highly accessible writing style, a simple treatment of mathematics, and clear guide to applications, this book is a classic text in electrical and electronic engineering. Students will find it both readable and comprehensive. The fundamental ideas relevant to the understanding of the electrical properties of materials are emphasized; in addition, topics are selected in order to explain the operation of devices having applications (or possible future applications) in engineering. The mathematics, kept deliberately to a minimum, is well within the grasp of a second-year student. This is achieved by choosing the simplest model that can display the essential properties of a phenomenon, and then examining the difference between the ideal and the actual behavior. The whole text is designed as an undergraduate course. However most individual sections are self-contained and can be used as background reading in graduate courses, and for interested persons who want to explore advances in microelectronics, lasers, nanotechnology and several other topics that impinge on modern life.