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A capital N with a circumflex, counting quanta.
Also known as: Occupation number operator, N hat, Number operator
The number operator is the creation operator times the annihilation operator, and its eigenvalues are how many quanta are present. Its eigenvalues are non-negative integers, which is where the discreteness of 'quantum' actually comes from.
Denotes the number operator, whose eigenvalues are the occupation numbers of a quantum state.
Contexts: Laboratory
Has non-negative integer eigenvalues, which is the formal origin of quantisation of excitations.
Contexts: Laboratory
A capital letter N with a small inverted-V accent set directly above it.