wave equation

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noun

Mathematics, Physics. any differential equation that describes the propagation of waves or other disturbances in a medium.

Physics. any of the fundamental equations of quantum mechanics whose solutions are possible wave functions of a particle.

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Compare Schrödinger equation.

Origin of wave equation

First recorded in 1925–30

Words nearby wave equation

wave cyclone, waved, wave down, wave election, wave energy, wave equation, wave farm, wave-form, wave front, wave function, waveguide

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use wave equation in a sentence

Quantum mechanics holds that quantities like charge and mass are quantized—made up of discrete, countable units that cannot be subdivided—but that things like space, time, and wave equations are fundamentally continuous.
Tomorrow’s computer, yesterday|Simson Garfinkel ’87, PhD ’05|April 28, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Thus it attracted a wave of cowboy operators to fly passengers and cargo between cities.
Who Will Get AsiaAir 8501’s Black Boxes?|Clive Irving|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There have been previous waves of people moving to Texas, and we are now experiencing the latest wave.
Will Texas Stay Texan?|David Fontana|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The army has since conducted a brutal wave of jailings against activists and journalists.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015|Movements.Org|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST

We prefer to wave away the warning signs; like The Interview, Mulholland Drive was comfortably downplayed as over-the-top satire.
Pyongyang Shuffle: Hollywood In Dead Panic Over Sony Hack|James Poulos|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Perhaps, like Hawking searching for his elegant equation, filmmakers will never find the answer.
Why Can’t Movies Capture Genius?|Clive Irving|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But to wave this discourse of Heathens, how many self-contradicting principles are there held among Christians?
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe
The wave-like movement of these animals is particularly graceful and cleverly done.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
While you were admiring the long roll of the wave, a sudden spray would be dashed over you, and make you catch your breath!
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
"Yes," said Punch, lifted up in his father's arms to wave good-bye.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II|Rudyard Kipling
"I've brought ye thet Injun I wuz tellin' ye uv," she said, with a wave of her hand toward Alessandro.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson

British Dictionary definitions for wave equation

wave equation

noun

physics a partial differential equation describing wave motion. It has the form ∇²φ = (1/ c ²) × (∂²φ/∂ t ²), where ∇² is the Laplace operator, t the time, c the speed of propagation, and φ is a function characterizing the displacement of the wave

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 wave equation

wave equation

A partial differential equation that describes the shape and movement of waves, given a set of boundary conditions (such as the initial shape of the wave, or the evolution of a force affecting the wave).

The fundamental equation of wave mechanics. See also Schrödinger's equation.