# Introduction

This is public documentation for the [Materials Project](https://materialsproject.org) (MP). The Materials Project is a decade-long effort from the Department of Energy to pre-compute properties of "materials" and make this data publicly available, with the intent of accelerating the process of materials discovery. In this context, a material can mean either an inorganic crystal (like silicon), or a molecule (like ethylene). Possible applications are vast, but might include better batteries, solar energy, water splitting, optoelectronics, catalysts and more (see [here](https://materialsproject.org/about/publications) for a list of publications).

{% hint style="info" %}
If you notice an error or omission, please let us know at [our user forum located at matsci.org/materials-project](https://matsci.org/materials-project). The Materials Project documentation is a living document and always a work in progress. If you find any errors or opportunities for improvement in these docs, please use the "Edit on Github" button in the right sidebar to suggest changes for us to review. Thank you!
{% endhint %}


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