helicity
/ (hɪˈlɪsɪtɪ) /
nounplural -ties
physics the projection of the spin of an elementary particle on the direction of propagation
Origin of helicity
1C20: 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-lĭs′ĭ-tē, hē′ ]
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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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