Book excerpt: Describing the fundamental physical properties of materials used in electronics, the thorough coverage of this book will facilitate an understanding of the technological processes used in the fabrication of electronic and photonic devices. The book opens with an introduction to the basic applied physics of simple electronic states and energy levels. Silicon and copper, the building blocks for many electronic devices, are used as examples. Next, more advanced theories are developed to better account for the electronic and optical behavior of ordered materials, such as diamond, and disordered materials, such as amorphous silicon. Finally, the principal quasi-particles (phonons, polarons, excitons, plasmons, and polaritons) that are fundamental to explaining phenomena such as component aging (phonons) and optical performance in terms of yield (excitons) or communication speed (polarons) are discussed.