fermion

[ fur-mee-on ]

/ ˈfɜr miˌɒn /

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noun Physics.

any particle that obeys the exclusion principle and Fermi-Dirac statistics; fermions have spins that are half an odd integer: 1/2, 3/2, 5/2, …

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Origin of fermion

First recorded in 1945–50; fermi + (mes)on

OTHER WORDS FROM fermion

fer·mi·on·ic, adjective

Words nearby fermion

fermentative, fermi, Fermi-Dirac statistics, Fermi energy, Fermi, Enrico, fermion, fermium, Fermor, fern, Fernandel, Fernandez

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fermion in a sentence

It involves a problem called the Fermi-Hubbard model, which describes the behavior of a class of subatomic particles known as fermions—a group that includes electrons—as they hop around within a solid.
U.K. startup’s breakthrough could aid quantum computers in the hunt for exotic materials|Jeremy Kahn|December 10, 2020|Fortune

British Dictionary definitions for fermion

fermion

/ (ˈfɜːmɪˌɒn) /

noun

any of a group of elementary particles, such as a nucleon, that has half-integral spin and obeys Fermi-Dirac statisticsCompare boson

Word Origin for fermion

C20: named after Enrico Fermi; see -on

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 fermion

fermion

[ fûr′mē-ŏn′, fĕr′- ]

An elementary or composite particle, such as an electron, quark, or proton, whose spin is an integer multiple of 12. Fermions act on each other by exchanging bosons and are subject to the Pauli exclusion principle, which requires that no two fermions be in the same quantum state. Fermions are named after the physicist Enrico Fermi, who along with Paul Dirac developed quantum statistical models of their behavior. Compare boson.