14^th Conference on Solid State Chemistry

The 14^th International Conference on Solid State Chemistry was the next of a long row of international conferences founded originally by Prof. Frumar, the renowned Czech scientist and professor, whose scientific school has achieved a worldwide reputation in the field of crystalline and amorphous semiconductors. He started this conference series as a platform for scientists working in the field of solid-state chemistry, chemistry, and physics of novel inorganic materials. New concepts, approaches, fundamental understanding of solid-state chemistry and materials, as well as the application aspects of inorganic materials comprised the major topics of the conferences, which, through the years, grew in significance to an internationally well-established event.

For all these years, the Conferences have been organized jointly by institutions and universities from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. After the events held in Karlovy Vary (1986), Pardubice (1989), Bratislava (1996), Prague (2000), Bratislava (2002), Prague (2004), Pardubice (2006), Bratislava (2008), Prague (2010), Pardubice (2012), Trenčianske Teplice (2014), Prague (2016), and Pardubice (2018), the 14^th International Conference on Solid State Chemistry (SSC) was for the first time organized in Trenčín, Slovakia, by the Centre for Functional and Surface Functionalized Glass (FunGlass) of the Alexander Dubček University of Trenčín. Like many other conferences in the world, the organization of the 14^th International Conference on Solid State Chemistry, originally scheduled in 2020, had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and, eventually, had to be postponed until 2021. Due to the unpredictable situation and difficulties in planning and travel, the conference was organized in virtual mode for the first time. It was a challenging, but interesting experience, and although all participants missed personal contacts, and heated scientific coffee break discussions, the scientific program did not lag behind the previous events.

The conference was attended by 106 participants from 15 countries, who delivered 65 lecturers, out of which 21 were invited, and presented 13 posters.

The conference covered a broader range of topics than previous events, which included:

1. advances in solid-state materials synthesis, new solids, and compounds,

2. solid thin films deposition by physical and chemical techniques,

3. advanced characterization techniques,

4. atomic and electronic structure of solids,

5. photonic and optical properties of solids,

6. electrochemistry,

7. physical chemistry of solids,

8. computation and theoretical aspects,

9. advanced glasses, ceramics, and polymeric materials and nanomaterials,

10. microporous/mesoporous materials,

11. chalcogenide, oxide, hydride materials,

12. 2D materials, surfaces, interfaces, hybrid, and nanostructured solids,

13. functional materials,

14. materials and processes for data storage,

15. materials for renewable energy production and storage,

16. additive manufacturing of advanced materials, composites, and structures,

17. biomaterials.

The conference would not be possible without the inputs and involvement of the members of the International Advisory Board, and the International Program Committee, listing many respected scientists from all around the world. Special thanks belong to the local organizing committee from the FunGlass Centre. We also deeply appreciate the support of the Slovak Silicate Scientific – Technological Society, Slovak Glass Society, and Slovak Chemical Society, as well as the involvement of the former conference organizers, University of Pardubice, and the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry of the Slovak Academy of Sciences.

The financial contribution of the Visegrad Fund allowed the organizers to grant benefits for invited speakers and to support the Young Scientist Poster Contest. The IUPAC endorsement gave the event the “seal of excellence”, and the conference was honored by the presence of the IUPAC representative, prof. Javier García Martínez, who informed on the IUPAC activities, and delivered a keynote lecture on hierarchical zeolites, and their use as cracking catalysts. The opportunity to publish selected conference contributions in the special issue of the journal Pure and Applied Chemistry was greatly appreciated, making the SSCh 2021 the 6^th conference in the series, having the contributions published in the journal.

The Alexander Dubček University and the FunGlass team are honored by the opportunity to organize this great event and wish success to the next event, which has been tentatively scheduled to take place in Pardubice, Czech Republic, in 2023.