absorptance

[ ab-sawrp-tuh ns, -zawrp- ]
/ æbˈsɔrp təns, -ˈzɔrp- /

noun Physics, Optics.

the ratio of the amount of radiation absorbed by a surface to the amount of radiation incident upon it.

QUIZZES

HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!

Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
a granular metamorphic rock.
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.
a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT
Compare reflectance, transmittance.

Origin of absorptance

1930–35; translation of German Absorptionsvermögen. See absorption, -ance

Words nearby absorptance

absorbent cotton, absorbent vessel, absorber, absorbing, absorbing well, absorptance, absorptiometer, absorptiometry, absorption, absorption band, absorption chromatography
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for absorptance

absorptance

absorption factor

/ (əbˈsɔːptəns, -ˈzɔːp-) /

noun

physics a measure of the ability of an object to absorb radiation, equal to the ratio of the absorbed radiant flux to the incident flux. For a layer of material the ratio of the flux absorbed between the entry and exit surfaces of the layer to the flux leaving the entry surface is the internal absorptanceSymbol: α Compare reflectance, transmittance

Word Origin for absorptance

C20: absorption + -ance
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