Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun physics A mathematical function that describes the propagation of the quantum mechanical wave associated with a particle (or system of particles), related to the probability of finding the particle in a particular region of space.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From wave +‎ function.

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Examples

  • Because of the constant electon/postitron splitting and pairing, the wavefunction is very, very chaotic appearing.

    Dawkins and ID 2008

  • He also generalized that the quantum wavefunction is not algorithmic.

    Damn Duck 2008

  • Because of the constant electon/postitron splitting and pairing, the wavefunction is very, very chaotic appearing.

    Dawkins and ID 2008

  • In the first slide of that lecture he points out that a wavefunction is not a physical observable (because otherwise the collapse of a wavefunction in an experiment would imply superliminal propagation of a physical object).

    Are Changes Brewing and How Does the Mind Fit In? 2008

  • Most physicists particularly experimentalists are content to use the idea of wavefunction collapse as a calculational shortcut and go about the business of predicting and measuring the physical world, for which regular quantum theory works astound-ingly well.

    How to Teach Physics to Your Dog CHAD ORZEL 2009

  • But according to quantum mechanics, the true state of the food could be a combination, known as a wavefunction, which takes the form (food) = a (salad) + b (steak), where a and b are some numerical coefficients.

    Quantum interrogation Sean 2006

  • To understand the term "wavefunction", please look at this Mandelbrot Set.

    Cleaning Up The Mess 2007

  • In quantum physics the atoms in a gas are described by a wavefunction which is a function of all the coordinates of the atoms, but which only specifies the probability of finding a particle in a given region at a given time.

    Additional background material on the Nobel Prize in Physics 1996 1996

  • Actually, that seems to be the point: if there’s a puppy, the wavefunction gets remixed whether or not the puppy makes a ruckus, whereas the wavefunction is the same if there is no puppy.

    Quantum interrogation Sean 2006

  • Actually, that seems to be the point: if there’s a puppy, the wavefunction gets remixed whether or not the puppy makes a ruckus, whereas the wavefunction is the same if there is no puppy.

    Quantum interrogation Sean 2006

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