kinetic theory

British  

noun

1. In full: the kinetic theory of gases.  a theory of gases postulating that they consist of particles of negligible size moving at random and undergoing elastic collisions

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kinetic theory Scientific  

1. A fundamental theory of matter that explains physical properties in terms of the motion of atoms and molecules. In kinetic theory, properties such as pressure and temperature are viewed as statistical properties of the overall behavior of large numbers of particles. For example, the pressure exerted by a gas on an object is the net result of the numerous collisions of the gas molecules against the object.

2. See also pressure statistical mechanics temperature thermodynamics

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Example Sentences

There were heated debates about the validity of kinetic theory until direct evidence of atoms was obtained.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

Also during the 19th century, the kinetic theory of gases was developed.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

This distribution is called the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, after its originators, who calculated it based on kinetic theory, and has since been confirmed experimentally.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

We gain a better understanding of pressure and temperature from the kinetic theory of gases, which assumes that atoms and molecules are in continuous random motion.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

We begin to have a kinetic theory of the physical universe.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 717, September 28, 1889 by Various