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Glite Dictionary
exponential decay

exponential decay

1 6.8
A decrease where an amount falls by the same part over equal times, becoming much smaller over time
  • noun
  • /ˌɛkspəˈnɛnʃəl dɪˈkeɪ/
  • Specialized
translation icon : decadencia exponencial
  • The population of the bacteria showed exponential decay as the antibiotics took effect, rapidly lowering their numbers.

Examples

  • Many, many physical systems exhibit exponential decay or exponential growth.

  • It's an exponential decay.

    The Manhattan Project (1986)

  • We just said the evaluation wave is an exponential decay on one side, right?

  • So exponential decay means you have a constant so-called half life.

  • The fact that this is the case is verified by the calculation of the rate of exponential decay of the known amount of CO2 added to the system by human actions.

    Blog text (9)

  • An illustration of how the amount of TOC removed can be determined from a hypothetical TOC exponential decay curve.

    Blog text (10)

  • It will obey an exponential decay function, the decay factor of which (absent changes in the sequestration rate) will remain stable.

    Blog text (9)

  • The corresponding relaxation patterns display exponential decays, as shown by Roy Bar-Ziv and colleagues from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.

    Academic text (2002)

  • The mathematical expressions in Eqs. (19) and (20) above speak to a particular type of TOC depletion process called "exponential decay."

    Blog text (10)

  • In physics, the radioactive material undergoes exponential decay, reducing to half its amount every few years.

Surface Forms

exponential decay singular
exponential decays plural

Morphology

exponential + decay

The phrase is compositionally built: 'exponential' modifies 'decay', so a learner who knows both words can infer it denotes a decrease of a particular (exponential) kind. However, the precise mathematical sense (rate proportional to current value) is technical and 'exponential' is a specialized term that B1 learners may interpret only as 'very rapid', so full understanding typically requires extra domain knowledge.

Etymology

Exponential decay gives a simple image: imagine a jar of cookies where you eat half of what is left each day, so the jar loses a lot at first and smaller amounts later. Because you always remove the same percentage of what remains, decay here means 'a decrease that depends on how much is left'.