The papers in this volume cover all aspects of laser assisted surface processing ranging from the preparation of high-Tc superconducting layer structures to industrial laser applications for device fabrication. The topics presented give recent results in organometallic chemistry and laser photochemistry, and novel surface characterization techniques. The ability to control the surface morphology by digital deposition and etching shows one of the future directions for exciting applications of laser surface processing, some of which may apply UV and VUV excitation. The understanding of elementary proceses is essential for the design of novel deposition methods, with diamond CVD being an outstanding example. The high quality of these contributions once again demonstrates that the E-MRS is an efficient forum for interaction between research workers and industry.
