Femtosecond chemistry is central to our understanding of chemical reactivity, with applications in many fields of chemistry and related sciences. This professional text provides a fully referenced introduction to this exploding new field. Leading authors, among them Nobel Laureate Lord George Porter and Ahmed Zewail, introduce the reader in a comprehensive manner to * general concepts * experimental techniques * theoretical approaches Starting with a historical overview, this up-to-date and didactically well-organized compendium provides many textbook-type examples of exciting systems, from simple molecules and clusters to liquids, surfaces, solids, and biomolecules. This book is a valuable tool for researchers in molecular physics, theoretical chemistry, physical chemistry, quantum optics, cluster and surface science, and biophysical chemistry. But also newcomers and graduate students who want to know more about femtosecond chemistry will benefit from this volume.