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path length

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"Path length" is a versatile term used across various scientific disciplines to describe the distance or number of steps along a specific route or path.

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Definition

C1Graph Theory

(technical, academic)The number of edges in the shortest path between two vertices in a graph.

Example

  • In the given graph, the path length between vertex A and vertex D is three.

C1Physics

(technical, academic)The distance traveled by light or another wave through a medium, considering refraction or reflection.

Example

  • The optical path length changes when light passes through different materials.

B2Computing

(technical)The number of characters in a file system path.

Example

  • The maximum path length for a file in this operating system is 260 characters.

B2Networking

(technical)The number of hops or routers a data packet passes through from source to destination.

Example

  • The path length between the two servers is five hops.

C1Chemistry

(technical, academic)The distance that light travels through a sample in a spectrophotometer.

Example

  • Adjusting the path length in the spectrophotometer can affect the absorbance measurements.