@article{939f6905a93948b99ee950043d414eba,
title = "Introductory comments",
author = "Ian Robertson and Lynn Rehn and Bob Averback and Keith Tappin",
note = "The International Summer school on the Fundamentals of Radiation Damage was held at the Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory at the University of Illinois from 1-12 August, 1993. The objectives of the school were: to teach the basic physics of radiation effects, and the consequences of these effects on materials properties, to provide a forum for students to present their research work, to foster a sense of community among the students and more senior researchers, and to expose the vitality of the research field. We felt the time was ripe for such a gathering, since many leaders in the field were approaching that stage in their careers when it becomes critical to share their accumulated expertise with the next generation of researchers. The radiation effects community as a whole strongly encouraged the idea of the school. This support manifested itself in several ways: the number of people willing to devote their time to present lectures (this number was much greater than we could use effectively in the approximately two-week time period), the large number of university faculty who encouraged their students to enroll, and the willingness of many institutions to commit financial support for the school. In total, over one hundred and ten students, representing more than ten different countries, attended. The topics selected for presentation were divided into two categories, the first emphasizing the physics of defect production, defect aggregation, and subsequent effects on the properties of materials; the second highlighting current and future research areas and technological problems. Lecture notes were copied and handed out to all attendees. The organizers were pleased with both the quality and depth of the presentations. Nevertheless, it was felt that a more formal summary of the lecture material should be made available to the irradiation effects community. Therefore lecturers were asked to prepare manuscripts based on their presentations. These underwent the normal review process, and the results are presented in this special volume of the Journal of Nuclear Materials. We wish particularly to comment on the enthusiasm displayed by the students, both in their individual presentations, as well as in their response to the lectures presented. As many of us know, few professional meetings are able to maintain a stimulating environment over the course of a week, and therefore week-long conferences generally provide a midweek break as a strategy for renewing vigor. This school went from early morning to late in the evening for six straight days, had a one-day break on Sunday, then resumed again for four more days. Attendance, and participation, remained strong throughout these ten days! The generally high quality of the lectures provided a great assist in maintaining this enthusiasm. Considerable funds were raised, and were used primarily to defray the costs for undergraduate and graduate students to attend. Registration fees and room and board for practically all the students were borne by the school. Travel costs for the speakers were in general provided by their home institution, with only local costs being provided by the organizers. We wish to thank the following organizations for their financial support:",
year = "1994",
month = oct,
doi = "10.1016/0022-3115(94)90002-7",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "216",
pages = "vii--viii",
journal = "Journal of Nuclear Materials",
issn = "0022-3115",
publisher = "Elsevier B.V.",
number = "C",
}