This book reflects the excitement in the scientific community about III-V nitrides. Based on papers presented at the First International Symposium on Gallium Nitride and Related Materials (ISGN-1), it reveals the large amount of work that has taken place since the field exploded with the announcement of commercial blue-light-emitting devices. The compound semiconductors in the III-V nitride systems are of increasing interest for high-performance optoelectronic and electronic device applications. These wide-bandgap semiconductor materials are also of great fundamental scientific interest because of their unique structural, electrical and optical properties. From the advances in the technologies for the heteroepitaxial growth of these materials, leading to improved quality and device performance, it is expected that III-V nitrides will soon be of significant practical and commercial interest. Topics include: crystal growth - substrates and early stages; molecular beam growth techniques; chemical vapor phase and alloys and novel growth techniques; structural properties; electronic properties; optical properties; point defects; hydrogen, etching and other materials processes; surfaces and metal contacts and devices.