dipole

American  

[dahy-pohl] / ˈdaɪˌpoʊl /

noun

1. Physics, Electricity. a pair of electric point charges or magnetic poles pole of equal magnitude and opposite signs, separated by an infinitesimal distance.

2. Physical Chemistry. a polar molecule.

3. Also called dipole antenna.  Radio, Television. an antenna of a transmitter or receiving set consisting of two equal rods extending in opposite direction from the connection to the lead-in wire.

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dipole British  

/ ˈdaɪˌpəʊl /

noun

1. two electric charges or magnetic poles that have equal magnitudes but opposite signs and are separated by a small distance

2. a molecule in which the centre of positive charge does not coincide with the centre of negative charge

3. Also called: dipole aerial.  a directional radio or television aerial consisting of two equal lengths of metal wire or rods, with a connecting wire fixed between them in the form of a T

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dipole Scientific  

/ dī′pōl′ /

1. A pair of electric charges or magnetic poles, of equal magnitude but of opposite sign or polarity, separated by a small distance.

2. A molecule having two such charges or poles.

3. An antenna consisting of two rods of equal length extending outward in a straight line. Dipole antennas are usually used for frequencies below 30 megahertz.

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Other Word Forms

• dipolar adjective

Etymology

Origin of dipole

First recorded in 1910–15; di- ¹ + pole ²

Example Sentences

This advance was possible because the researchers identified links between the equations used in dipole models and those found in complexity theory.

From Science Daily

The PQ symmetry addresses the strong CP problem, which asks why experiments fail to detect the tiny electric dipole moment that theory predicts for the neutron.

From Science Daily

Instead of relying on magnetic or electric polarization states, these materials contain vortices of electric dipoles.

From Science Daily

Most earlier studies of superradiance assumed that light-matter coupling dominates, modeling the entire atomic group as one large "giant dipole" connected to the cavity's electromagnetic field.

From Science Daily

“There is a large disparity from north to south,” Swain said, adding that this pattern of a north-south “dipole” appears likely to persist.

From Los Angeles Times