weak interaction

noun

Physics.

1. the interaction between elementary particles and the intermediate vector bosons that carry the weak force from one particle to another.

weak interaction

noun

1. Also called: weak nuclear interaction.  weak nuclear force. physics an interaction between elementary particles that is responsible for certain decay processes, operates at distances less than about 10 ^–15 metres, and is 10 ¹² times weaker than the strong interaction. The weak interaction and electromagnetic interactions are now described by the unifying electroweak theory See interaction electroweak interaction

weak interaction

1. See weak force

Word History and Origins

Origin of weak interaction¹

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

While the electromagnetic force and gravity are quotidian to human interactions and everyday life, and the strong force is what binds atomic nuclei together, the weak interaction is not as overtly visible.

Read more on Salon

The prizewinners studied weak-force interactions at high energies by creating a beam of neutrinos, which do not interact through the strong force but do so by the weak interaction.

Read more on Washington Post

This weak interaction does not perturb the tunneling.

Read more on Scientific American

To be clear, we are certainly not the first to connect homochirality with the weak interaction.

Read more on Scientific American

But how did the weak interaction that was, among other things, responsible for the decay of Murray’s “strange particles” actually work?

Read more on Scientific American