atomic pile

American  

noun

Physics.

1. reactor.

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atomic pile British  

noun

1. the original name for a nuclear reactor

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atomic pile Scientific  

1. An early type of nuclear reactor whose core consisted of layers of graphite block interspersed with uranium, designed to create a sustained fission reaction.

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Etymology

Origin of atomic pile

First recorded in 1940–45

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

atomic pile

Chita Rivera is a one-woman atomic pile, and her dances are radioactive.

From Time Magazine Archive

Tracerlab also began marketing elements which had been made radioactive by insertion in the Oak Ridge atomic pile.

From Time Magazine Archive

When Oak Ridge released the radioactive byproducts of its atomic pile for private use in 1946, few U.S. businessmen paid much attention.

From Time Magazine Archive

Since the 1936 edition, the physicists too have been busy producing words and expressions for everyday use, e.g., atomic pile, chain reaction, Einstein equation and fissionable.

From Time Magazine Archive

Progress on the atomic pile gave reason for optimism, but Fermi—unhappily relocated to Chicago on Compton’s orders—was still building only prototypes.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

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