wave front


nounPhysics.
  1. a surface, real or imaginary, that is the locus of all adjacent points at which the phase of oscillation is the same.

Origin of wave front

1
First recorded in 1865–70

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British Dictionary definitions for wavefront

wavefront

/ (ˈweɪvˌfrʌnt) /


noun
  1. physics a surface associated with a propagating wave and passing through all points in the wave that have the same phase. It is usually perpendicular to the direction of propagation

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for wave front

wave front

  1. The set of points in space reached by a wave or vibration at the same instant as the wave travels through a medium. Wave fronts generally form a continuous line or surface. The lines formed by crests of ripples on a pond, for example, correspond to curved wave fronts.

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