In Java, the Stack class is a subclass of the Vector class that implements a stack, which is a last-in, first-out (LIFO) data structure. The Stack class is part of the Java Collections Framework and provides many methods for working with stacks of objects.

Here are some of the key methods defined in the Stack class:

• void push(E element): Pushes the specified element onto the top of the stack.

• E pop(): Removes and returns the element at the top of the stack.

• E peek(): Returns the element at the top of the stack without removing it.

• boolean empty(): Returns true if the stack is empty, and false otherwise.

• int search(Object element): Searches the stack for the specified element and returns its distance from the top of the stack. Returns -1 if the element is not found.

The Stack class is a useful data structure for implementing algorithms that require a LIFO data structure, such as depth-first search or expression evaluation. However, in general, the Deque interface and its implementations, such as ArrayDeque, are preferred over the Stack class because they provide more functionality and are more efficient.