We'd like to use analytics cookies to understand which symbols people look up, so we know what to research next. They are not used for advertising and we set none of them unless you say yes. What we store.
A Greek gamma, how much relativity changes things.
Also known as: Lorentz factor, Gamma factor, Relativistic factor
The Lorentz factor is the single number that scales time dilation, length contraction and relativistic mass increase. It is one at rest and rises without bound as speed approaches light, which is why it is one at everyday speeds to more decimal places than anyone can measure.
Denotes the Lorentz factor, one over the square root of one minus the squared speed ratio.
Contexts: Laboratory
Scales time dilation, length contraction and relativistic momentum by the same amount, which is why one factor suffices for all three.
Contexts: Laboratory
Collides with the photon symbol, the Euler–Mascheroni constant and the heat capacity ratio, all gamma.
Contexts: Laboratory
A Greek lowercase gamma, a stroke descending below the line crossed by a rising stroke.