History thumb|Silicon wafer for use in electronic devices Because of its direct relevance to products of commerce, solid state inorganic chemistry has been strongly driven by technology. Progress in the field has often been fueled by the demands of industry, sometimes in collaboration with academia. Applications discovered in the 20th century include zeolite and platinum-based catalysts for petroleum processing in the 1950s, high-purity silicon as a core component of microelectronic devices in the 1960s, and “high temperature” superconductivity in the 1980s. The invention of X-ray crystallography in the early 1900s by William Lawrence Bragg was an enabling innovation. Our understanding of how reactions proceed at the atomic level in the solid state was advanced considerably by Carl Wagner's work on oxidation rate theory, counter diffusion of ions, and defect chemistry. Because of his contributions, he has sometimes been referred to as the father of solid state chemistry.
History thumb|Silicon wafer for use in electronic devices Because of its direct relevance to products of commerce solid state inorganic chemistry has been strongly driven by technology Progress in the field has often been fueled by the demands of industry sometimes in collaboration with academia Applications discovered in the 20th century include zeolite and platinum-based catalysts for petroleum processing in the 1950s high-purity silicon as a core component of microelectronic devices in the 1960s and “high temperature” superconductivity in the 1980s The invention of X-ray crystallography in the early 1900s by William Lawrence Bragg was an enabling innovation Our understanding of how reactions proceed at the atomic level in the solid state was advanced considerably by Carl Wagner's work on oxidation rate theory counter diffusion of ions and defect chemistry Because of his contributions he has sometimes been referred to as the father of solid state chemistry