Organized as a textbook for the learning student or the researcher needing to acquire the core competencies, this volume maintains the emphasis on basics, while updating the examples to include recent results from the literature. The third edition also includes new chapters on single molecule detection, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, novel probes and radiative decay engineering. This full-color textbook features the following: problem sets following every chapter; glossaries of commonly used acronyms and mathematical symbols; appendices containing a list of recommended books which expand on various specialized topics; and, sections describing advanced topics will indicate as such, to allow these sections to be skipped in an introductory course, allowing the text to be used for classes of different levels.