Achievements and prospects in X-ray absorption spectroscopy

In this paper we discuss the developments in X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) data analysis. We show that these developments have made Extended XAFS into a powerful technique for the investigation of local structural properties of condensed matter systems. The state of data analysis in the X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) region and in Diffraction Anomalous Fine Structure (DAFS) are briefly discussed. As an example, the contribution of EXAFS experiments to our fundamental understanding of structural phase transitions is presented showing the power of EXAFS experiments when combined with detailed data analysis.