Vijay Shankar Sharma
Textbook physics terms. Not a BFUT reinterpretation. 371 terms. Textbook meanings only.
12 terms. Page 1 of 1.
particle · intermediate
The elementary particles that mediate the weak nuclear force, one of the four fundamental forces of nature, responsible for processes such as radioactive beta decay. The W boson, which comes in positively and negatively charged versions, and the electrically neutral Z boson are unusually massive compared to other force-carrying particles, a property that makes the weak force extremely short-ranged, and both were directly detected experimentally in 1983.
mechanics · intro
The SI unit of power, defined as one joule of energy transferred or converted per second. Named after Scottish engineer James Watt, whose improvements to the steam engine were pivotal to the Industrial Revolution, the watt is used to rate the power output or consumption of devices ranging from light bulbs and household appliances to car engines and power plants, often expressed in larger units like kilowatts or megawatts.
waves · intro
A disturbance that travels through space and time, transferring energy from one location to another without necessarily transporting matter along with it. Waves can be mechanical, requiring a physical medium such as air or water to propagate, like sound waves, or electromagnetic, capable of traveling through the vacuum of space, like light. Waves are broadly classified as transverse or longitudinal based on the relationship between the direction of oscillation and the direction of travel.
quantum · intro
A fundamental concept in quantum mechanics describing how entities such as light and matter exhibit both wave-like and particle-like properties, depending on the type of experiment used to observe them. Light can behave as a continuous wave, producing interference patterns, or as discrete particles called photons, depending on the situation, and matter particles like electrons similarly display wave properties, such as diffraction, alongside their particle-like behavior. This duality challenged classical intuitions and led directly to the development of quantum theory.
quantum · intermediate
A mathematical function used in quantum mechanics to fully describe the quantum state of a system, encoding the probabilities of finding a particle in different positions, momenta, or other measurable states. According to the Born rule, the probability of finding a particle at a given location is proportional to the square of the magnitude of the wavefunction at that point. The wavefunction evolves predictably over time according to the Schrodinger equation until a measurement is made.
quantum · intermediate
A concept in quantum mechanics describing the apparent, abrupt change of a system's wavefunction from a superposition of multiple possible states into a single definite state upon measurement. Before measurement, a quantum system can exist in a combination of several possible outcomes simultaneously, but the act of measuring forces the system to settle into just one of them. The precise physical interpretation of this collapse remains a subject of ongoing debate among physicists and philosophers of science.
waves · intro
The distance between two successive corresponding points on a wave, such as from one crest to the next, or from one trough to the next, typically measured in meters or, for light, often in nanometers. Wavelength is inversely related to frequency for a wave traveling at a fixed speed; shorter wavelengths correspond to higher frequencies. For visible light, wavelength determines the perceived color.
particle · intro
One of the four fundamental forces of nature, responsible for processes such as beta decay, in which a neutron transforms into a proton or vice versa, and playing an essential role in the nuclear fusion reactions that power the Sun. The weak force is mediated by the W and Z bosons, which are unusually massive compared to other force carriers, making the weak force extremely short-ranged and, despite its name, actually stronger than gravity at subatomic distances.
cosmology · intermediate
The subtle, statistical distortion of the observed shapes of distant background galaxies caused by the gravitational influence of intervening mass, including dark matter, along the line of sight, distinct from the more dramatic distortions seen in strong gravitational lensing. Because the effect on any single galaxy is too small to detect individually, astronomers statistically analyze the coherent alignment of many galaxy shapes across a region of sky to map the underlying distribution of both visible and dark matter.
mechanics · intro
The gravitational force exerted on an object by a nearby massive body, such as Earth, calculated as the object's mass multiplied by the local gravitational acceleration. Unlike mass, which remains constant regardless of location, weight varies depending on the strength of the local gravitational field; an object weighs less on the Moon than on Earth, even though its mass is unchanged. Weight is measured in newtons, the same unit used for force generally.
astro · intro
The dense, compact remnant left behind after a low- to medium-mass star, similar to the Sun, exhausts its nuclear fuel and sheds its outer layers, leaving behind a hot, slowly cooling core roughly the size of Earth but containing a mass comparable to the Sun. White dwarfs no longer generate energy through fusion and are supported against further gravitational collapse by electron degeneracy pressure, gradually cooling and dimming over billions of years.
mechanics · intro
The transfer of energy that occurs when a force acts on an object and causes it to move some distance in the direction of that force, calculated as the force multiplied by the displacement, or more precisely by the component of force parallel to the displacement. If a force is applied but no displacement occurs, such as pushing against an immovable wall, no work is done in the physics sense, even though effort is expended. Work is measured in joules, the same unit used for energy.