physical phenomenon
phenomenon of the material world
Doppler effect
frequency change of a wave for observer relative to its source
van der Waals radius
in chemistry, a measure for the size of an atom that is not chemically (ionically or covalently) bound; half the closest distance of two equal, non-covalently bound, atoms
Casimir effect
Physical force caused by virtual particles
Kaye effect
property of complex liquids
Photon diffusion
The spreading of particular components of light
comet tail
dust or gases blown off a comet by solar wind in the inner solar system, leaving a visible trail
relativistic Doppler effect
Scientific phenomenon
Cooper pair
pair of electrons or other fermions bound together at low temperature allowing for superconductivity
levitation
physical process by which an object is held aloft, without mechanical support, in a stable position
wave function collapse
process by which a quantum system takes on a definitive state
electromagnetic interaction
the fundamental interaction that occurs between electrically charged particles
backscatter
reflection of waves, particles, or signals back to the approximate direction from which they came
Early effect
variation in the effective width of the base in a bipolar junction transistor due to a variation in the applied base-to-collector voltage
dynamic nuclear polarisation
technique used in NMR spectroscopy
iridium anomaly
thin layer of the element iridium in rock strata at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary
wave propagation
any of the ways in which waves travel
magnetic saturation
(in some magnetic materials) state reached when an increase in applied external magnetic field H cannot increase the magnetization of the material further, so the total magnetic flux density B more or less levels off
Frank-Read source
mechanism explaining the generation of multiple dislocations in specific well-spaced slip planes in crystals when they are deformed
Peltier effect
the presence of heating or cooling at an electrified junction of two different conductors
electrical treeing
electrical pre-breakdown phenomenon in solid insulation
proximity effect
phenomenon in electron beam lithography that developed pattern is wider than scanned pattern
criticality
state of a nuclear reactor where the nuclear chain reaction is precisely self-sustaining
thermal phenomenon
phenomenon occuring when bodies are cooled or heated
Refraction of sea waves
change of direction of sea waves near the coast
substitutional defect
type of point defect in a crystal
hearing threshold
minimum sound level of a pure tone that an average human ear with normal hearing can hear with no other sound present
fire
rapid oxidation of a material; phenomenon that emits light and heat
electricity
physical phenomena associated with the presence and flow of electric charge
diffraction
various phenomena that occur when a wave encounters an obstacle or a slit
surface tension
tendency of a liquid surface to shrink to reduce surface area
Compton effect
scattering of photons off electrons in an atom
resonance
phenomenon in which a vibrating system or external force drives another system to oscillate with greater amplitude at specific frequencies
capillary action
ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces
cavitation
formation and then immediate implosion of cavities in a liquid
Sisyphus cooling
laser cooling technique
Cooperativity
enzyme kinetics and chemical bonding
fluorescence quenching
process which decreases the fluorescence intensity of a given substance
microwave auditory effect
Concept in human perception of sound
Auger effect
physical phenomenon in which the filling of an inner-shell vacancy of an atom is accompanied by the emission of an electron from the same atom
stimulated emission
process by which an incoming photon of a specific frequency can interact with an excited atomic electron (or other excited molecular state), causing it to drop to a lower energy level
Ostwald ripening
process in which small crystals preferentially dissolve and re-precipitate onto larger crystals over time
polymorphism
ability of a solid material to exist in more than one form or crystal structure
boiling-point elevation
phenomenon where the boiling point of a liquid is higher when another compound is added
hot chocolate effect
phenomenon of wave mechanics
Jeans instability
mechanism which causes the collapse of interstellar gas clouds and subsequent star formation
primer annealing
Lowering the temperature gradually (slow cooling process) to recombine the DNA molecules.
light echo
physical phenomenon caused by light reflected off surfaces distant from the source, and arriving at the observer with a delay relative to this distance;analogous to an echo of sound, it mostly only manifests itself over astronomical distances