Abstract
Apparently simple detectors, Resistive Plate Chambers actually incorporate a range of physical situations somewhat more complex than those found in most other gaseous detectors. These include the interplay between materials with different electrical characteristics, space-charge dominated avalanches evolving in very high electric fields and the propagation of fast signals on heterogeneous multiconductor transmission lines. In this article the state-of-the-art of physical modelling of many of these aspects is reviewed and sometimes expanded, while aspects still requiring further work are highlighted.