Appendix F Glossary of Key Symbols and Notation
In this glossary, key symbols and notation are briefly defined.
| Symbol | Definition |
|---|---|
| $latex \overline{\text{any symbol}}$ | average (indicated by a bar over a symbol—e.g., $latex \bar{v}$ is average velocity) |
| $latex ^{\circ} \text{C}$ | Celsius degree |
| $latex ^{\circ} \text{F}$ | Fahrenheit degree |
| $latex // $ | parallel |
| $latex \bot $ | perpendicular |
| $latex \propto $ | proportional to |
| $latex \pm $ | plus or minus |
| $latex _0 $ | zero as a subscript denotes an initial value |
| $latex \alpha $ | alpha rays |
| $latex \alpha $ | angular acceleration |
| $latex \alpha $ | temperature coefficient(s) of resistivity |
| $latex \beta $ | beta rays |
| $latex \beta $ | sound level |
| $latex \beta $ | volume coefficient of expansion |
| $latex \beta ^{-} $ | electron emitted in nuclear beta decay |
| $latex \beta ^{+} $ | positron decay |
| $latex \gamma $ | gamma rays |
| $latex \gamma $ | surface tension |
| $latex \gamma = 1/ \sqrt{1 – v^2 / c^2} $ | a constant used in relativity |
| $latex \Delta $ | change in whatever quantity follows |
| $latex \delta $ | uncertainty in whatever quantity follows |
| $latex \mathit\Delta E $ | change in energy between the initial and final orbits of an electron in an atom |
| $latex \mathit\Delta E $ | uncertainty in energy |
| $latex \mathit\Delta m $ | difference in mass between initial and final products |
| $latex \mathit\Delta N $ | number of decays that occur |
| $latex \mathit\Delta p $ | change in momentum |
| $latex \mathit\Delta p $ | uncertainty in momentum |
| $latex \mathit\Delta \text{PE}_{\text{g}} $ | change in gravitational potential energy |
| $latex \mathit\Delta \theta $ | rotation angle |
| $latex \mathit\Delta s $ | distance traveled along a circular path |
| $latex \mathit\Delta t $ | uncertainty in time |
| $latex \mathit\Delta t_0 $ | proper time as measured by an observer at rest relative to the process |
| $latex \mathit\Delta V $ | potential difference |
| $latex \mathit\Delta x $ | uncertainty in position |
| $latex \epsilon _0 $ | permittivity of free space |
| $latex \eta $ | viscosity |
| $latex \theta $ | angle between the force vector and the displacement vector |
| $latex \theta $ | angle between two lines |
| $latex \theta $ | contact angle |
| $latex \theta $ | direction of the resultant |
| $latex \theta _b $ | Brewster’s angle |
| $latex \theta _c $ | critical angle |
| $latex \kappa $ | dielectric constant |
| $latex \lambda $ | decay constant of a nuclide |
| $latex \lambda $ | wavelength |
| $latex \lambda _n $ | wavelength in a medium |
| $latex \mu _0 $ | permeability of free space |
| $latex \mu _k $ | coefficient of kinetic friction |
| $latex \mu _s $ | coefficient of static friction |
| $latex v_e $ | electron neutrino |
| $latex \pi ^+ $ | positive pion |
| $latex \pi ^- $ | negative pion |
| $latex \pi ^0 $ | neutral pion |
| $latex \rho $ | density |
| $latex \rho _{\text{c}} $ | critical density, the density needed to just halt universal expansion |
| $latex \rho _{\text{fl}} $ | fluid density |
| $latex \overline{\rho} _{\text{obj}} $ | average density of an object |
| $latex \rho / \rho _{\text{w}} $ | specific gravity |
| $latex \tau $ | characteristic time constant for a resistance and inductance ($latex RL $) or resistance and capacitance ($latex RC $) circuit |
| $latex \tau $ | characteristic time for a resistor and capacitor ($latex RC $) circuit |
| $latex \tau $ | torque |
| $latex \Upsilon $ | upsilon meson |
| $latex \Phi $ | magnetic flux |
| $latex \phi $ | phase angle |
| $latex \Omega $ | ohm (unit) |
| $latex \omega $ | angular velocity |
| $latex \text{A}$ | ampere (current unit) |
| $latex A $ | area |
| $latex A $ | cross-sectional area |
| $latex A $ | total number of nucleons |
| $latex a $ | acceleration |
| $latex a_{\text{B}} $ | Bohr radius |
| $latex a_{\text{c}} $ | centripetal acceleration |
| $latex a_{\text{t}} $ | tangential acceleration |
| $latex \text{AC}$ | alternating current |
| $latex \text{AM}$ | amplitude modulation |
| $latex \text{atm}$ | atmosphere |
| $latex B $ | baryon number |
| $latex B $ | blue quark color |
| $latex \overline{B} $ | antiblue (yellow) antiquark color |
| $latex b $ | quark flavor bottom or beauty |
| $latex B $ | bulk modulus |
| $latex B $ | magnetic field strength |
| $latex B_{\text{int}} $ | electron’s intrinsic magnetic field |
| $latex B_{\text{orb}} $ | orbital magnetic field |
| $latex \text{BE} $ | binding energy of a nucleus—it is the energy required to completely disassemble it into separate protons and neutrons |
| $latex \text{BE/A} $ | binding energy per nucleon |
| $latex \text{Bq} $ | becquerel—one decay per second |
| $latex C $ | capacitance (amount of charge stored per volt) |
| $latex C $ | coulomb (a fundamental SI unit of charge) |
| $latex C_{\text{p}} $ | total capacitance in parallel |
| $latex C_{\text{s}} $ | total capacitance in series |
| $latex \text{CG} $ | center of gravity |
| $latex \text{CM} $ | center of mass |
| $latex c $ | quark flavor charm |
| $latex c $ | specific heat |
| $latex c $ | speed of light |
| $latex \text{Cal} $ | kilocalorie |
| $latex \text{cal} $ | calorie |
| $latex \textit{\text{COP}}_{\text{hp}} $ | heat pump’s coefficient of performance |
| $latex \textit{\text{COP}}_{\text{ref}} $ | coefficient of performance for refrigerators and air conditioners |
| $latex \text{cos} \theta $ | cosine |
| $latex \text{cot} \theta $ | cotangent |
| $latex \text{csc} \theta $ | cosecant |
| $latex D $ | diffusion constant |
| $latex d $ | displacement |
| $latex d $ | quark flavor down |
| $latex \text{dB} $ | decibel |
| $latex d_i $ | distance of an image from the center of a lens |
| $latex d_o $ | distance of an object from the center of a lens |
| $latex \text{DC} $ | direct current |
| $latex E $ | electric field strength |
| $latex \epsilon $ | emf (voltage) or Hall electromotive force |
| $latex \text{emf} $ | electromotive force |
| $latex E $ | energy of a single photon |
| $latex E $ | nuclear reaction energy |
| $latex E $ | relativistic total energy |
| $latex E $ | total energy |
| $latex E_0 $ | ground state energy for hydrogen |
| $latex E_0 $ | rest energy |
| $latex \text{EC} $ | electron capture |
| $latex E_{\text{cap}} $ | energy stored in a capacitor |
| $latex \textit{\text{Eff}} $ | efficiency—the useful work output divided by the energy input |
| $latex \textit{\text{Eff}}_{\textit{\text{C}}} $ | Carnot efficiency |
| $latex E_{\text{in}} $ | energy consumed (food digested in humans) |
| $latex E_{\text{ind}} $ | energy stored in an inductor |
| $latex E_{\text{out}} $ | energy output |
| $latex e $ | emissivity of an object |
| $latex e^+ $ | antielectron or positron |
| $latex \text{eV} $ | electron volt |
| $latex \text{F} $ | farad (unit of capacitance, a coulomb per volt) |
| $latex \text{F} $ | focal point of a lens |
| $latex \textbf{\text{F}} $ | force |
| $latex F $ | magnitude of a force |
| $latex F $ | restoring force |
| $latex F_{\text{B}} $ | buoyant force |
| $latex F_{\text{c}} $ | centripetal force |
| $latex F_{\text{i}} $ | force input |
| $latex \textbf{F}_{\text{net}} $ | net force |
| $latex F_{\text{o}} $ | force output |
| $latex \text{FM} $ | frequency modulation |
| $latex f $ | focal length |
| $latex f $ | frequency |
| $latex f_0 $ | resonant frequency of a resistance, inductance, and capacitance ($latex RLC $) series circuit |
| $latex f_0 $ | threshold frequency for a particular material (photoelectric effect) |
| $latex f_1 $ | fundamental |
| $latex f_2 $ | first overtone |
| $latex f_3 $ | second overtone |
| $latex f_{\text{B}} $ | beat frequency |
| $latex f_{\text{k}} $ | magnitude of kinetic friction |
| $latex f_{\text{s}} $ | magnitude of static friction |
| $latex G $ | gravitational constant |
| $latex G $ | green quark color |
| $latex \overline{G} $ | antigreen (magenta) antiquark color |
| $latex g $ | acceleration due to gravity |
| $latex g $ | gluons (carrier particles for strong nuclear force) |
| $latex h $ | change in vertical position |
| $latex h $ | height above some reference point |
| $latex h $ | maximum height of a projectile |
| $latex h $ | Planck’s constant |
| $latex hf $ | photon energy |
| $latex h_i $ | height of the image |
| $latex h_o $ | height of the object |
| $latex I $ | electric current |
| $latex I $ | intensity |
| $latex I $ | intensity of a transmitted wave |
| $latex I $ | moment of inertia (also called rotational inertia) |
| $latex I_0 $ | intensity of a polarized wave before passing through a filter |
| $latex I_{\text{ave}} $ | average intensity for a continuous sinusoidal electromagnetic wave |
| $latex I_{\text{rms}} $ | average current |
| $latex J $ | joule |
| $latex J / \psi $ | Joules/psi meson |
| $latex \text{K} $ | kelvin |
| $latex k $ | Boltzmann constant |
| $latex k $ | force constant of a spring |
| $latex K_{\alpha} $ | x rays created when an electron falls into an $latex n = 1 $ shell vacancy from the $latex n = 3 $ shell |
| $latex K_{\beta} $ | x rays created when an electron falls into an $latex n = 2 $ shell vacancy from the $latex n = 3 $ shell |
| $latex \text{kcal} $ | kilocalorie |
| $latex \text{KE} $ | translational kinetic energy |
| $latex \text{KE} + \text{PE} $ | mechanical energy |
| $latex \text{KE}_e $ | kinetic energy of an ejected electron |
| $latex \text{KE}_{\text{rel}} $ | relativistic kinetic energy |
| $latex \text{KE}_{\text{rot}} $ | rotational kinetic energy |
| $latex \overline{\text{KE}} $ | thermal energy |
| $latex \text{kg} $ | kilogram (a fundamental SI unit of mass) |
| $latex L $ | angular momentum |
| $latex \text{L} $ | liter |
| $latex L $ | magnitude of angular momentum |
| $latex L $ | self-inductance |
| $latex \ell $ | angular momentum quantum number |
| $latex L_{\alpha} $ | x rays created when an electron falls into an $latex n = 2 $ shell from the $latex n = 3 $ shell |
| $latex L_e $ | electron total family number |
| $latex L_{\mu} $ | muon family total number |
| $latex L_{\tau} $ | tau family total number |
| $latex L_{\text{f}} $ | heat of fusion |
| $latex L_{\text{f}}$ and $latex L_{\text{v}} $ | latent heat coefficients |
| $latex L_{\text{orb}} $ | orbital angular momentum |
| $latex L_{\text{s}} $ | heat of sublimation |
| $latex L_{\text{v}} $ | heat of vaporization |
| $latex L_z $ | z – component of the angular momentum |
| $latex M $ | angular magnification |
| $latex M $ | mutual inductance |
| $latex \text{m} $ | indicates metastable state |
| $latex m $ | magnification |
| $latex m $ | mass |
| $latex m $ | mass of an object as measured by a person at rest relative to the object |
| $latex \text{m} $ | meter (a fundamental SI unit of length) |
| $latex m $ | order of interference |
| $latex m $ | overall magnification (product of the individual magnifications) |
| $latex m(^AX) $ | atomic mass of a nuclide |
| $latex \text{MA} $ | mechanical advantage |
| $latex m_{\text{e}} $ | magnification of the eyepiece |
| $latex m_e $ | mass of the electron |
| $latex m_{\ell} $ | angular momentum projection quantum number |
| $latex m_n $ | mass of a neutron |
| $latex m_{\text{o}} $ | magnification of the objective lens |
| $latex \text{mol} $ | mole |
| $latex m_p $ | mass of a proton |
| $latex m_{\text{s}} $ | spin projection quantum number |
| $latex N $ | magnitude of the normal force |
| $latex \text{N} $ | newton |
| $latex \textbf{\text{N}}$ | normal force |
| $latex N $ | number of neutrons |
| $latex n $ | index of refraction |
| $latex n $ | number of free charges per unit volume |
| $latex N_A $ | Avogadro’s number |
| $latex N_{\text{r}} $ | Reynolds number |
| $latex \text{N} \cdot \text{m} $ | newton-meter (work-energy unit) |
| $latex \text{N} \cdot \text{m} $ | newtons times meters (SI unit of torque) |
| $latex \text{OE} $ | other energy |
| $latex P $ | power |
| $latex P $ | power of a lens |
| $latex P $ | pressure |
| $latex \textbf{\text{p}} $ | momentum |
| $latex p $ | momentum magnitude |
| $latex p $ | relativistic momentum |
| $latex \textbf{\text{p}}_{\text{tot}} $ | total momentum |
| $latex \textbf{\text{p}}^{\prime}_{\text{tot}} $ | total momentum some time later |
| $latex p_{\text{abs}} $ | absolute pressure |
| $latex p_{\text{atm}} $ | atmospheric pressure |
| $latex p_{\text{atm}} $ | standard atmospheric pressure |
| $latex \text{PE} $ | potential energy |
| $latex \text{PE}_{el} $ | elastic potential energy |
| $latex \text{PE}_{\text{elec}} $ | electric potential energy |
| $latex \text{PE}_s $ | potential energy of a spring |
| $latex P_g $ | gauge pressure |
| $latex P_{in} $ | power consumption or input |
| $latex P_{out} $ | useful power output going into useful work or a desired, form of energy |
| $latex Q $ | latent heat |
| $latex Q $ | net heat transferred into a system |
| $latex Q $ | flow rate—volume per unit time flowing past a point |
| $latex +Q $ | positive charge |
| $latex -Q $ | negative charge |
| $latex q $ | electron charge |
| $latex q_p $ | charge of a proton |
| $latex q $ | test charge |
| $latex \text{QF} $ | quality factor |
| $latex R $ | activity, the rate of decay |
| $latex R $ | radius of curvature of a spherical mirror |
| $latex R $ | red quark color |
| $latex \overline{R} $ | antired (cyan) quark color |
| $latex R $ | resistance |
| $latex \text{R} $ | resultant or total displacement |
| $latex R $ | Rydberg constant |
| $latex R $ | universal gas constant |
| $latex r $ | distance from pivot point to the point where a force is applied |
| $latex r $ | internal resistance |
| $latex r_{\bot} $ | perpendicular lever arm |
| $latex r $ | radius of a nucleus |
| $latex r $ | radius of curvature |
| $latex r $ | resistivity |
| $latex \text{r or rad} $ | radiation dose unit |
| $latex \text{rem} $ | roentgen equivalent man |
| $latex \text{rad} $ | radian |
| $latex \text{RBE} $ | relative biological effectiveness |
| $latex RC $ | resistor and capacitor circuit |
| $latex \text{rms} $ | root mean square |
| $latex r_n $ | radius of the nth H-atom orbit |
| $latex R_p $ | total resistance of a parallel connection |
| $latex R_s $ | total resistance of a series connection |
| $latex R_s $ | Schwarzschild radius |
| $latex S $ | entropy |
| $latex \textbf{\text{S}} $ | intrinsic spin (intrinsic angular momentum) |
| $latex S $ | magnitude of the intrinsic (internal) spin angular momentum |
| $latex S $ | shear modulus |
| $latex S $ | strangeness quantum number |
| $latex s $ | quark flavor strange |
| $latex \text{s} $ | second (fundamental SI unit of time) |
| $latex s $ | spin quantum number |
| $latex \textbf{\text{s}} $ | total displacement |
| $latex \text{sec} \theta $ | secant |
| $latex \text{sin} \theta $ | sine |
| $latex s_z $ | z-component of spin angular momentum |
| $latex T $ | period—time to complete one oscillation |
| $latex T $ | temperature |
| $latex T_c $ | critical temperature—temperature below which a material becomes a superconductor |
| $latex T $ | tension |
| $latex \text{T} $ | tesla (magnetic field strength B) |
| $latex t $ | quark flavor top or truth |
| $latex t $ | time |
| $latex t_{1/2} $ | half-life—the time in which half of the original nuclei decay |
| $latex \text{tan} \theta $ | tangent |
| $latex U $ | internal energy |
| $latex u $ | quark flavor up |
| $latex \text{u} $ | unified atomic mass unit |
| $latex \textbf{\text{u}} $ | velocity of an object relative to an observer |
| $latex \textbf{\text{u}}^{\prime} $ | velocity relative to another observer |
| $latex V $ | electric potential |
| $latex V $ | terminal voltage |
| $latex \text{V} $ | volt (unit) |
| $latex V $ | volume |
| $latex \textbf{\text{v}} $ | relative velocity between two observers |
| $latex v $ | speed of light in a material |
| $latex \textbf{\text{v}} $ | velocity |
| $latex \overline{\textbf{\text{v}}} $ | average fluid velocity |
| $latex V_B – V_A $ | change in potential |
| $latex \textbf{\text{v}}_d $ | drift velocity |
| $latex V_p $ | transformer input voltage |
| $latex V_{\text{rms}} $ | rms voltage |
| $latex V_s $ | transformer output voltage |
| $latex \textbf{\text{v}}_{\text{tot}} $ | total velocity |
| $latex v_{\text{w}} $ | propagation speed of sound or other wave |
| $latex \textbf{\text{v}}_{\text{w}} $ | wave velocity |
| $latex W $ | work |
| $latex W $ | net work done by a system |
| $latex \text{W} $ | watt |
| $latex w $ | weight |
| $latex w_{\text{fl}} $ | weight of the fluid displaced by an object |
| $latex W_c $ | total work done by all conservative forces |
| $latex W_{nc} $ | total work done by all nonconservative forces |
| $latex W_{out} $ | useful work output |
| $latex X $ | amplitude |
| $latex \text{X} $ | symbol for an element |
| $latex \begin{matrix} Z \\ A \end{matrix} K_N $ | notation for a particular nuclide |
| $latex x $ | deformation or displacement from equilibrium |
| $latex x $ | displacement of a spring from its undeformed position |
| $latex x $ | horizontal axis |
| $latex X_C $ | capacitive reactance |
| $latex X_L $ | inductive reactance |
| $latex x_{\text{rms}} $ | root mean square diffusion distance |
| $latex y $ | vertical axis |
| $latex Y $ | elastic modulus or Young’s modulus |
| $latex Z $ | atomic number (number of protons in a nucleus) |
| $latex Z $ | impedance |
