Boltzmann
(ˈbɒltsmən)
The surname of Ludwig Boltzmann (1844–1906), an Austrian physicist, used attrib. or in the possessive of various laws, phenomena, etc., in Physics. Boltzmann's constant (see quot. 1959).
| 1879 Trans. Cambridge Phil. Soc. XII. 547 (title) On Boltzmann's Theorem on the average distribution of energy in a system of material points. 1910 Sci. Abstr. A. XIII. 184 The value of Boltzmann's universal constant is found to be K = 7·5 × 10-17. 1915 Proc. Roy. Soc. A. XCI. 529 Where ε is the charge and m the mass of an electron and k is Boltzmann's constant. 1958 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 961/1 Boltzmann equation, algebraic equation stating that the entropy of a system of particles depends on the logarithm of the probability of its macroscopic state. 1959 Chambers's Encycl. XI. 398/1 The constant k is known as Boltzmann's constant, sometimes called the entropy constant. It represents the gas constant divided by the number of molecules in the gas (gas constant per molecule). 1962 Simpson & Richards Junction Transistors i. 11 In transistor technology these conditions apply almost invariably so that the Boltzmann distribution is generally used. 1968 P. A. P. Moran Introd. Probability Theory vii. 341 The density of the probability distribution of their potential energies will be proportional to exp {obigpren}- U / kT {cbigpren}, where U is the potential energy, k is Boltzmann's constant, and T is the absolute temperature. |