D. Tabor – författare

This book is an attempt to explain hardness measurements of metals in terms of some of their more basic physical properties. It does not deal with the atomic and crystalline mechanism of elastic or plastic deformation, but starting with the elastic and plastic characteristics it shows that the hardness behaviour of metals may be expressed in terms of these characteristics. It is hoped that this presentation will provide, for physicists, engineers, and metallurgists, a better understanding of what hardness means and what hardness measurements imply. The book places an emphasis on the physical concepts involved, so that the non-mathematical reader may grasp and appreciate the general physical picture without needing to follow the more detailed treatment. From reviews: 'This book is clearly written and illustrated and can be warmly recommended to all those who are interested in the hardness of metals. It is without doubt the most important work on the subject to have appeared for many years.' Nature 'It is in its fresh and unusual approach to the subject that this book will appeal most. Work from a very wide field is collected and critically discussed, and the author is to be congratulated on a volume which should appeal to metallurgists, engineers and physicists.' Research '...this is a book which the mechanical testing engineer will wish to have ready to hand.' British Journal of Applied Physics 'The story makes fascinating reading, not only because of the wealth of new explanations it contains, but also because of the author's skill in presenting his arguments so clearly and simply. It is extraordinary how far he is able to go on the most elementary of mathematics.' Institute of Metals Metallurgical Abstracts 'Has succeeded in raising the subject of hardness from its background of empiricism to that of scientific theory....This book is recommended for the scientist who...is concerned with the indentation of solids....The mathematics is simple and the style is easy to read.' Applied Mechanics Reviews

This classic work, originally published in 1950, was a landmark in the development of the subject of tribology. When it was first published, one reviewer wrote that it 'marks the beginning of a new epoch in the study of friction and lubrication .... The most interesting and comprehensive work on a single branch of physics I have ever read.' For the 1986 reprint David Tabor wrote a new preface, reviewing developments in the subject in the 36 years since the book first appeared. He has also added an appreciation of the life and work of F.P. Bowden, who died in 1968.

This is now the third edition of a well established and highly successful undergraduate text. The content of the second edition has been reworked and added to where necessary, and completely new material has also been included. There are new sections on amorphous solids and liquid crystals, and completely new chapters on colloids and polymers. Using unsophisticated mathematics and simple models, Professor Tabor leads the reader skilfully and systematically from the basic physics of interatomic and intermolecular forces, temperature, heat and thermodynamics, to a coherent understanding of the bulk properties of gases, liquids and solids. The introductory material on intermolecular forces and on heat and thermodynamics is followed by several chapters dealing with the properties of ideal and real gases, both at an elementary and at a more sophisticated level. The mechanical, thermal and electrical properties of solids are considered next, before an examination of the liquid state. The author continues with chapters on colloids and polymers, and ends with a discussion of the dielectric and magnetic properties of matter in terms of simple atomic models. The abiding theme is that all these macroscopic material properties can be understood as resulting from the competition between thermal energy and intermolecular or interatomic forces. This is a lucid textbook which will continue to provide students of physics and chemistry with a comprehensive and integrated view of the properties of matter in all its many fascinating forms.