Properties of Matter

In generic terms anything which occupies space and has a mass is called matter. In short, all objects which exist in environment are made up of some type of matter. Even the stars and our galaxies are made of some type of matter. Typically, matter has atoms and other particles which have mass. Matter is said to exist in four states (or phases): solid, liquid, gas and plasma. However, in experimental     advance techniques have realized other phases, previously only theoretical constructs, such as Bose–Einstein condensates and fermionic condensates. An observation on an elementary-particle view of matter also leads to new phases of matter, such as the quark–gluon plasma. In physics and chemistry, matter involves both wave-like and particle-like properties, the so-called wave–particle duality.

When we can categorize a physical object based upon certain properties of its matter, we get more insights in to the nature of the object and its characters.

States of matter help us to identify properties of matter. Example, matter can exist in solid state, liquid state, gaseous state or plasma state. The physical quantities like temperature of the object, pressure exerted on the object and the inter-atomic forces within the object will decide the stare of matter.

To describe any physical properties of a matter its state has to be known. Example water in solid state (ice) behaves differently than that of water in gaseous state (steam). The basic understanding of solid state and gaseous state will help is to predict the properties of water in these states.

Also mass of a matter, molecule compositions and atom can be used to understand a matter. We know that a molecule is the smallest particle of matter into which a body can be divided without losing its identity. An Atom is a still smaller particle produced by division of a molecule.