Book excerpt: This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the growing field of nuclear solid state physics with synchrotron radiation, a technique that is finding a number of unique applications in fields such as magnetism, surface science, and lattice dynamics. Due to the remarkable brilliance of modern synchrotron radiation sources, the method is particularly suited for the study of thin films, nanoparticles and clusters. Its high isotopic specificity can be employed to measure magnetic or vibrational properties with very high spatial resolution. The book is written on an introductory level and is thus suited for newcomers to the field. Many examples are presented to illustrate the unique experimental possibilities.