Boris M. Smirnov obtained his Master of Science in Theoretical Nuclear Physics in 1962. In 1964 he received his Doctorate in Physics, and in 1968 he became Professor of Physics. In 1972 he was appointed Head of Laboratory at Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy (Moscow). From 1982 to 1986 he was Head of Laboratory at the Institute of Thermophysics (Novosibirsk). From 1986 he is working at the Joint Institute for High Temperatures (Moscow) as Head of Laboratory, Head of Department and Principal Scientist. His research focuses on theory of atoms, molecules, clusters, plasma and chemical physics. He has authored 55 books and 500 papers. His latest books are: Fundamentals of Ionized Gases. Basic Topics of Plasma Physics (Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, 2011); Nanoclusters and Microparticles in Gases and Vapors (De Gruyter, Berlin, 2012); Theory of Gas Discharge Plasma (Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 2014); and Microphysics of Atmospheric Phenomena (Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 2016).

This book presents physical units and widely used physical formulas, which are given together with conversion factors in various units. It includes frequently used atomic spectra and data for atoms, ions and molecules, as well as potential curves for diatomic molecules, and provides numerical parameters for transport phenomena in gases and plasmas. Further, the rate constants of a number of processes in atmospheric ionized air have been added to this second edition of the book. The numerical data has been selected from the information on atoms, atomic systems, atomic processes and models for atomic physics in this area, and the numerical parameters of atoms, ions and atom systems are included in periodical tables of elements.