helicity

/ (hɪˈlɪsɪtɪ) /


nounplural -ties
  1. physics the projection of the spin of an elementary particle on the direction of propagation

Origin of helicity

1
C20: from helix + -ity

Words Nearby helicity

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 helicity

helicity

[ hə-lĭsĭ-tē, hē′ ]


  1. The projection of a particle's spin vector in the direction of its momentum vector, being positive if it points in the same direction, and negative if it points in the opposite direction. Helicity is in effect the handedness, or chirality, of the spin of a particle.

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