phase angle
The term "phase angle" is widely used in physics, mathematics, and electronics to describe the angular position or difference in various contexts.
Definition
C1Wave Physics
(technical, academic)The angular displacement of a sinusoidal wave from a reference point or time, typically measured in degrees or radians.
Example
- The phase angle of the wave determines the starting point of the cycle.
- A 90-degree phase angle means the wave is one-quarter of the way through its cycle.
C1Electronics
(technical, academic)The difference in phase between the voltage and current waveforms in an alternating current (AC) circuit.
Example
- In an AC circuit, the phase angle affects the power delivered to the load.
- The phase angle can indicate whether the circuit is predominantly inductive or capacitive.
C1Mathematics
(technical, academic)The angular component of the polar coordinate or vector representation of a complex number.
Example
- In polar coordinates, the phase angle determines the direction of the vector.
- The phase angle is crucial in converting complex numbers to their polar form.
C1Biomedical Analysis
(technical, academic)A measure of cell integrity and water distribution within and outside the cell membrane, derived from bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA).
Example
- A higher phase angle in BIA indicates better cell health.
- The phase angle is used to assess nutritional status and overall health.
Similar
Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "phase angle":