"This is an advanced level text and reference book on the physics of condensed matter systems. Assuming a familiarity with the basics of quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics, the book establishes a general framework, based on symmetries and conservation laws, for describing condensed phases of matter. After surveying the structure and properties of materials with different symmetries, it explores the role of spatial dimensionality and microscopic interactions in determining the nature of phase transitions. Particular attention is given to critical phenomena and renormalization group methods. The properties of liquids, liquid crystals, incommensurate crystals, quasicrystals, crystalline solids, magnetically ordered systems and amorphous solids are investigated in terms of their symmetry, generalized rigidity, hydrodynamics and topological defect structure. The book is written in a clear pedagogic style with extensive examples of real-world systems"--Page 4 of cover