eutectic

[ yoo-tek-tik ]

/ yuˈtɛk tɪk /

Physical Chemistry

adjective

of greatest fusibility: said of an alloy or mixture whose melting point is lower than that of any other alloy or mixture of the same ingredients.

noting or pertaining to such a mixture or its properties: a eutectic melting point.

noun

a eutectic substance.

Nearby words

eustele, eustyle, eusystole, eutaxia, eutaxy, eutectic, eutectic alloy, eutectoid, eutelegenesis, euterpe, euthanasia

Origin of eutectic

1880–85; < Greek eútēkt(os) easily melted, dissolved (eu- eu- + tēktós melted) + -ic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for eutectic

In this case the freezing point may rise (as in the case of silver and zinc), and one of the eutectic points will be absent.
The Phase Rule and Its Applications|Alexander Findlay
This is the eutectic point for iodine monochloride and iodine trichloride.
The Phase Rule and Its Applications|Alexander Findlay
If the initial composition of the magma is represented by a point between the two eutectic points, orthoclase will separate first.
The Phase Rule and Its Applications|Alexander Findlay
Or, in other cases, we may predict from the curve of melting-points that no eutectic alloy is possible.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 508, September 26, 1885|Various

At the eutectic point (15.6), these two solid phases could co-exist with the liquid phase.
The Phase Rule and Its Applications|Alexander Findlay

British Dictionary definitions for eutectic

eutectic

/ (juːˈtɛktɪk) /

adjective

(of a mixture of substances, esp an alloy) having the lowest freezing point of all possible mixtures of the substances

concerned with or suitable for the formation of eutectic mixtures

noun

a eutectic mixture

the temperature on a phase diagram at which a eutectic mixture forms

Word Origin for eutectic

C19: from Greek eutēktos melting readily, from eu- + tēkein to melt

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

Science definitions for eutectic

eutectic

[ yōō-tĕk′tĭk ]

The proportion of constituents in an alloy or other mixture that yields the lowest possible complete melting point. In all other proportions, the mixture will not have a uniform melting point; some of the mixture will remain solid and some liquid. At the eutectic, the solidus and liquidus temperatures are the same.

An alloy or other mixture with constituents in the proportions of the eutectic.

The melting point of the eutectic.