Planck constant
Noun
Meaning
Planck constant (uncountable)
Alternative form of Planck's constant
Synonyms
Examples
By fixing the Avogadro constant, the practical effect of this proposal would be that the uncertainty in the mass of a 12 C atom—and the magnitude of the kilogram—could be no better than the current 50 ppb uncertainty in the Planck constant.
By fixing the Planck constant, the definition of the kilogram would depend only on the definitions of the second and the meter.
It is usually encountered in quantum mechanics, where it is used in combination with the reduced Planck constant (symbol ħ, h-bar) and the angular frequency (symbol ω) or angular wavenumber (symbol k).
The constants are the speed of light (c), the Boltzmann constant (k), Newton's constant (G), and the reduced Planck constant (ħ).
If the kilogram is defined in terms of the Planck constant, it is likely there will only be a few—at most—watt balances initially operating in the world.
Spin is measured in units of the reduced Planck constant (ħ), with electrons, protons and neutrons all having spin ½ ħ, or "spin-½".