absorption spectrum


nounPhysics.
  1. the spectrum formed by electromagnetic radiation that has passed through a medium in which radiation of certain frequencies is absorbed.

Origin of absorption spectrum

1
First recorded in 1875–80

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use absorption spectrum in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for absorption spectrum

absorption spectrum

noun
  1. the characteristic pattern of dark lines or bands that occurs when electromagnetic radiation is passed through an absorbing medium into a spectroscope. An equivalent pattern occurs as coloured lines or bands in the emission spectrum of that medium

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for absorption spectrum

absorption spectrum

  1. The range of frequencies of electromagnetic radiation readily absorbed by a substance by virtue of its chemical composition. See more at atomic spectrum.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.