An effective reliability programme is an essential component of every product's design, testing and efficient production. From the failure analysis of a microelectronic device to software fault tolerance and from the accelerated life testing of mechanical components to hardware verification, a common underlying philosophy of reliability applies. Defining both fundamental and applied work across the entire systems reliability arena, this state-of-the-art reference presents methodologies for quality, maintainability and dependability. Featuring: Contributions from 60 leading reliability experts in academia and industry giving comprehensive and authoritative coverage. A distinguished international Editorial Board ensuring clarity and precision throughout. Extensive references to the theoretical foundations, recent research and future directions described in each chapter. Comprehensive subject index providing maximum utility to the reader. Applications and examples across all branches of engineering including IT, power, automotive and aerospace sectors. The handbook's cross-disciplinary scope will ensure that it serves as an indispensable tool for researchers in industrial, electrical, electronics, computer, civil, mechanical and systems engineering. It will also aid professional engineers to find creative reliability solutions and management to evaluate systems reliability and to improve processes. For student research projects it will be the ideal starting point whether addressing basic questions in communications and electronics or learning advanced applications in micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), manufacturing and high-assurance engineering systems.