Solid State physics emerged as a discipline in the 1940s with developments such as the such as the
semiconductor transistor, and now forms a sub-discipline of the biggest field
in physics, condensed matter.
Solid state physics is a
very diverse field which spans quantum physics, electromagnetism, and
statistical and thermal physics. There is also overlap and application to many
fields, including chemistry, medicine, biology, computing, materials science,
and electrical engineering.
Because 3D solids
are composed of ~ \( 10^{23} \) atoms, and real solids incorporate many local defects,
much of solid state physics consists of learning to construct appropriate
models and approximations.
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