fine structure
1
9.1
- noun
- /faɪn ˈstrʌk.tʃər/
- Specialized
:
estructura fina
- OK, so that's all I want to say about fine structure in the magnetic field.
- fine-structure constant
- variation in the fine structure
- temporal fine structure
Examples
-
Researchers observed the fine structure in the emission spectrum of the element.
-
That is the fine structure of the hydrogen atom.
-
In the theory described here, the fine-structure constant remains constant.
Academic text (2004) -
Figure 5: Close-up of the fine structure of the filaments above and to the left of center in the previous figure.
Academic text (1992) -
Repeating the measurement periodically can indicate whether the fine structure constant varies with time.
Academic text (2005) -
All the results except MM1 (from reference 5) are consistent with zero time variation in the fine-structure constant.
Academic text (2004) -
By studying such variations for a variety of elements, scientists can probe for changes in the fine-structure constant over cosmological timescales.
Academic text (2004) -
Over the past 20 years, x-ray absorption edge fine structure (XAFS) has proved invaluable in many structural studies.
Academic text (1995) -
Much of the excitement over the possibility of a time-varying fine-structure constant stems from a series of recent observations of quasar absorption systems.
Academic text (2004) -
Figure 2. Electronic transitions in hydrogen, when compared with hyperfine transitions in cesium-133, constrain variations in the fine-structure constant.
Academic text (2004)
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'fine' (small/detailed) + 'structure' (organization) transparently yield a sense of a small or detailed arrangement, so a B1 learner would likely infer a general meaning like 'small/detailed structure'. However, the specific technical sense referring to closely spaced spectral lines in atomic physics is specialized and not fully predictable from the parts without subject knowledge, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Fine structure comes from what scientists saw in light from atoms: a single bright line actually splits into several very thin lines that sit very close together. The word fine means 'tiny' and structure means 'pattern', so the name describes the small pattern of lines that shows tiny energy differences.