adiabatically
- adverb
- /ˌeɪdiəˈbætɪkli/
- Specialized
- In technical terms, the electronic wavefunctions change adiabatically with a shift in nuclear positions (the Born-Oppenheimer approximation), legitimizing the concept of interatomic bonds.
Examples
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For the experiment, the system must be adjusted adiabatically to maintain a constant energy state.
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"When materials are moving rapidly, they act differently than when they are treated adiabatically?
Academic text (2012) -
When air expands, it does work on its environment and it adiabatically cools its temperature drops.
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When a gas expands adiabatically, it cools down without losing heat to its surroundings.
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The compression of the gas was done adiabatically, ensuring that no heat was transferred during the process.
How Slow
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Adiabatically comes from Greek parts a- meaning 'not' and diabatos meaning 'pass through', so it can be remembered as 'not allowing a change to pass'. That's why in quantum physics an adiabatic change happens so slowly the system stays in the same energy state and does not move into other states.