Materials science is a field at the intersection of the basic sciences and engineering with a focus on the relationship between the microscopic (atomic or molecular) structure of a material and its macroscopic properties. Many techniques relevant to chemistry are used to characterize materials, and the descriptions of the underlying microscopic structure of the material are discussed with regard to solid-state chemistry. Thus many components of materials science represent applications of chemistry. In this section we will provide a brief introduction to materials science with a focus on some of the topics that are more relevant to chemistry.