time constant

noun

, Electricity.

1. the time required for a changing quantity in a circuit, as voltage or current, to rise or fall approximately 0.632 of the difference between its old and new value after an impulse has been applied that induces such a change: equal in seconds to the inductance of the circuit in henries divided by its resistance in ohms.

time constant

noun

1. electronics the time required for the current or voltage in a circuit to rise or fall exponentially through approximately 63 per cent of its amplitude

Word History and Origins

Origin of time constant¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

The advantage of parallel grouping is simply that it reduces the time constant.

From Project Gutenberg

Under these circumstances the time constant of the instrument on short circuit is 0.0081 sec.

From Project Gutenberg

How does the need for rapid working, and the question of time constant, affect the best mode of grouping the battery cells?

From Project Gutenberg

In Fig. 54 the position of the time constant for the top curve is shown by the vertical dotted line at 10 seconds.

From Project Gutenberg

We also tried the effect of keeping the digestive time constant and varying the amount of gastric juice employed.

From Project Gutenberg