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In this glossary, key symbols and notation are briefly defined.
Symbol | Definition |
---|---|
average (indicated by a bar over a symbol—e.g., is average velocity) | |
Celsius degree | |
Fahrenheit degree | |
parallel | |
perpendicular | |
proportional to | |
plus or minus | |
zero as a subscript denotes an initial value | |
alpha rays | |
angular acceleration | |
temperature coefficient(s) of resistivity | |
beta rays | |
sound level | |
volume coefficient of expansion | |
electron emitted in nuclear beta decay | |
positron decay | |
gamma rays | |
surface tension | |
a constant used in relativity | |
change in whatever quantity follows | |
uncertainty in whatever quantity follows | |
change in energy between the initial and final orbits of an electron in an atom | |
uncertainty in energy | |
difference in mass between initial and final products | |
number of decays that occur | |
change in momentum | |
uncertainty in momentum | |
change in gravitational potential energy | |
rotation angle | |
distance traveled along a circular path | |
uncertainty in time | |
proper time as measured by an observer at rest relative to the process | |
potential difference | |
uncertainty in position | |
permittivity of free space | |
viscosity | |
angle between the force vector and the displacement vector | |
angle between two lines | |
contact angle | |
direction of the resultant | |
Brewster's angle | |
critical angle | |
dielectric constant | |
decay constant of a nuclide | |
wavelength | |
wavelength in a medium | |
permeability of free space | |
coefficient of kinetic friction | |
coefficient of static friction | |
electron neutrino | |
positive pion | |
negative pion | |
neutral pion | |
density | |
critical density, the density needed to just halt universal expansion | |
fluid density | |
average density of an object | |
specific gravity | |
characteristic time constant for a resistance and inductance or resistance and capacitance circuit | |
characteristic time for a resistor and capacitor circuit | |
torque | |
upsilon meson | |
magnetic flux | |
phase angle | |
ohm (unit) | |
angular velocity | |
ampere (current unit) | |
area | |
cross-sectional area | |
total number of nucleons | |
acceleration | |
Bohr radius | |
centripetal acceleration | |
tangential acceleration | |
alternating current | |
amplitude modulation | |
atmosphere | |
baryon number | |
blue quark color | |
antiblue (yellow) antiquark color | |
quark flavor bottom or beauty | |
bulk modulus | |
magnetic field strength | |
electron’s intrinsic magnetic field | |
orbital magnetic field | |
binding energy of a nucleus—it is the energy required to completely disassemble it into separate protons and neutrons | |
binding energy per nucleon | |
becquerel—one decay per second | |
capacitance (amount of charge stored per volt) | |
coulomb (a fundamental SI unit of charge) | |
total capacitance in parallel | |
total capacitance in series | |
center of gravity | |
center of mass | |
quark flavor charm | |
specific heat | |
speed of light | |
kilocalorie | |
calorie | |
heat pump’s coefficient of performance | |
coefficient of performance for refrigerators and air conditioners | |
cosine | |
cotangent | |
cosecant | |
diffusion constant | |
displacement | |
quark flavor down | |
decibel | |
distance of an image from the center of a lens | |
distance of an object from the center of a lens | |
direct current | |
electric field strength | |
emf (voltage) or Hall electromotive force | |
electromotive force | |
energy of a single photon | |
nuclear reaction energy | |
relativistic total energy | |
total energy | |
ground state energy for hydrogen | |
rest energy | |
electron capture | |
energy stored in a capacitor | |
efficiency—the useful work output divided by the energy input | |
Carnot efficiency | |
energy consumed (food digested in humans) | |
energy stored in an inductor | |
energy output | |
emissivity of an object | |
antielectron or positron | |
electron volt | |
farad (unit of capacitance, a coulomb per volt) | |
focal point of a lens | |
force | |
magnitude of a force | |
restoring force | |
buoyant force | |
centripetal force | |
force input | |
net force | |
force output | |
frequency modulation | |
focal length | |
frequency | |
resonant frequency of a resistance, inductance, and capacitance series circuit | |
threshold frequency for a particular material (photoelectric effect) | |
fundamental | |
first overtone | |
second overtone | |
beat frequency | |
magnitude of kinetic friction | |
magnitude of static friction | |
gravitational constant | |
green quark color | |
antigreen (magenta) antiquark color | |
acceleration due to gravity | |
gluons (carrier particles for strong nuclear force) | |
change in vertical position | |
height above some reference point | |
maximum height of a projectile | |
Planck's constant | |
photon energy | |
height of the image | |
height of the object | |
electric current | |
intensity | |
intensity of a transmitted wave | |
moment of inertia (also called rotational inertia) | |
intensity of a polarized wave before passing through a filter | |
average intensity for a continuous sinusoidal electromagnetic wave | |
average current | |
joule | |
Joules/psi meson | |
kelvin | |
Boltzmann constant | |
force constant of a spring | |
x rays created when an electron falls into an shell vacancy from the shell | |
x rays created when an electron falls into an shell vacancy from the shell | |
kilocalorie | |
translational kinetic energy | |
mechanical energy | |
kinetic energy of an ejected electron | |
relativistic kinetic energy | |
rotational kinetic energy | |
thermal energy | |
kilogram (a fundamental SI unit of mass) | |
angular momentum | |
liter | |
magnitude of angular momentum | |
self-inductance | |
angular momentum quantum number | |
x rays created when an electron falls into an shell from the shell | |
electron total family number | |
muon family total number | |
tau family total number | |
heat of fusion | |
latent heat coefficients | |
orbital angular momentum | |
heat of sublimation | |
heat of vaporization | |
z - component of the angular momentum | |
angular magnification | |
mutual inductance | |
indicates metastable state | |
magnification | |
mass | |
mass of an object as measured by a person at rest relative to the object | |
meter (a fundamental SI unit of length) | |
order of interference | |
overall magnification (product of the individual magnifications) | |
atomic mass of a nuclide | |
mechanical advantage | |
magnification of the eyepiece | |
mass of the electron | |
angular momentum projection quantum number | |
mass of a neutron | |
magnification of the objective lens | |
mole | |
mass of a proton | |
spin projection quantum number | |
magnitude of the normal force | |
newton | |
normal force | |
number of neutrons | |
index of refraction | |
number of free charges per unit volume | |
Avogadro's number | |
Reynolds number | |
newton-meter (work-energy unit) | |
newtons times meters (SI unit of torque) | |
other energy | |
power | |
power of a lens | |
pressure | |
momentum | |
momentum magnitude | |
relativistic momentum | |
total momentum | |
total momentum some time later | |
absolute pressure | |
atmospheric pressure | |
standard atmospheric pressure | |
potential energy | |
elastic potential energy | |
electric potential energy | |
potential energy of a spring | |
gauge pressure | |
power consumption or input | |
useful power output going into useful work or a desired, form of energy | |
latent heat | |
net heat transferred into a system | |
flow rate—volume per unit time flowing past a point | |
positive charge | |
negative charge | |
electron charge | |
charge of a proton | |
test charge | |
quality factor | |
activity, the rate of decay | |
radius of curvature of a spherical mirror | |
red quark color | |
antired (cyan) quark color | |
resistance | |
resultant or total displacement | |
Rydberg constant | |
universal gas constant | |
distance from pivot point to the point where a force is applied | |
internal resistance | |
perpendicular lever arm | |
radius of a nucleus | |
radius of curvature | |
resistivity | |
radiation dose unit | |
roentgen equivalent man | |
radian | |
relative biological effectiveness | |
resistor and capacitor circuit | |
root mean square | |
radius of the n th H-atom orbit | |
total resistance of a parallel connection | |
total resistance of a series connection | |
Schwarzschild radius | |
entropy | |
intrinsic spin (intrinsic angular momentum) | |
magnitude of the intrinsic (internal) spin angular momentum | |
shear modulus | |
strangeness quantum number | |
quark flavor strange | |
second (fundamental SI unit of time) | |
spin quantum number | |
total displacement | |
secant | |
sine | |
z -component of spin angular momentum | |
period—time to complete one oscillation | |
temperature | |
critical temperature—temperature below which a material becomes a superconductor | |
tension | |
tesla (magnetic field strength B ) | |
quark flavor top or truth | |
time | |
half-life—the time in which half of the original nuclei decay | |
tangent | |
internal energy | |
quark flavor up | |
unified atomic mass unit | |
velocity of an object relative to an observer | |
velocity relative to another observer | |
electric potential | |
terminal voltage | |
volt (unit) | |
volume | |
relative velocity between two observers | |
speed of light in a material | |
velocity | |
average fluid velocity | |
change in potential | |
drift velocity | |
transformer input voltage | |
rms voltage | |
transformer output voltage | |
total velocity | |
propagation speed of sound or other wave | |
wave velocity | |
work | |
net work done by a system | |
watt | |
weight | |
weight of the fluid displaced by an object | |
total work done by all conservative forces | |
total work done by all nonconservative forces | |
useful work output | |
amplitude | |
symbol for an element | |
notation for a particular nuclide | |
deformation or displacement from equilibrium | |
displacement of a spring from its undeformed position | |
horizontal axis | |
capacitive reactance | |
inductive reactance | |
root mean square diffusion distance | |
vertical axis | |
elastic modulus or Young's modulus | |
atomic number (number of protons in a nucleus) | |
impedance |
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