wave function

American  

noun

Physics.

1. a solution of a wave equation.

2. (in quantum mechanics) a mathematical function, found by solving a quantum-mechanical wave equation, that is used to predict the outcome of measurements on physical systems.

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wave function British  

noun

1.  ψ.  physics a mathematical function of position and generally time, used in wave mechanics to describe the state of a physical system

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wave function Scientific  

1. A mathematical function used in quantum mechanics to describe the propagation of the wave associated with a particle or group of particles. The wave function is a solution to Schrödinger's equation, given the boundary conditions that describe the physical system in which the particle is found. The square of the function evaluated at a given point in space is proportional to the probability of finding the particle in the immediate vicinity of that position.

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Example Sentences

"That creates regions of overlap, and that overlap has enough information to use an algorithm to iteratively reconstruct three-dimensional information about the object and the electron wave function."

From Science Daily • May 4, 2026

Johannes’ overseer is no fan of “metaphysical rubbish,” which is where the young man’s energies are directed, particularly toward the universal wave function that suggests the existence of multiple realities.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 11, 2024

Maybe in the better branch of the wave function I’m heading to there won’t be so many haters.

From Salon • Jan. 30, 2024

But if the photon travels down the corridor without the bomb, something weird happens: Its wave function, in traveling down both corridors, is cut short in one by the bomb.

From Science Daily • Dec. 12, 2023

“If you take an electron and put it into a small space, its wave function gets compressed,” said Johan Aqvist, chair of the Nobel committee for the chemistry prize, at the announcement.

From Scientific American • Oct. 4, 2023