Fourier transform

[ foor-ee-ey trans-fawrm, -ee-er ]

noun

, Mathematics.

1. a mapping of a function, as a signal, that is defined in one domain, as space or time, into another domain, as wavelength or frequency, where the function is represented in terms of sines and cosines. : FT

Fourier transform

noun

1. an integral transform, used in many branches of science, of the form F( x ) = [1/√(2π)]ʃe ^ixyf( y )d y , where the limits of integration are from –∞ to +∞ and the function F is the transform of the function f

Word History and Origins

Origin of Fourier transform¹

First recorded in 1920–25; Fourier analysis

Example Sentences

These amplitude-modulated signals of different frequencies are then superimposed onto a single conductor, and a Fast Fourier Transform algorithm is finally used to decipher the individual signals.

From Science Daily

This method can extract different fluorophore signals, similar to how the human ear uses a mathematical model known as a Fourier transform to extract different pitches from a piece of music.

From Science Daily

They are created by feeding an audio signal into a Fourier transform, a mathematical model for translating sounds into another format.

From Washington Post

She found out about the xylazine in the drugs she took recently with a device a called a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, which a donor gave her group this year.

From New York Times

Not like a college textbook—there is a man named Kalid Azad, and he has a website called Better Explained where he explains things like the Fourier transform, which is a calculus theorem.

From Slate