Thin film technology is the process of depositing and characterizing functional material layers on a substrate. Metal-oxides, nitrides, and carbides exhibit an amazing range of functional properties, such as superconducting, colossal magnetoresistance, ferroelectricity, multiferroicity, high hardness and strength. These films are often grown epitaxially on single crystal substrates, which control the crystallographic order of the epitaxial films. As a result, epitaxial films are routinely used as active layers to build high-performance electronic and optical devices. We study the synthesis, microstructure, and physical properties of thin films for applications in superconductors, magnetism, optoelectronics, catalysts, photovoltaic solar cells, and batteries.