matrix mechanics

noun

, Physics.

1. a formulation of non-relativistic quantum mechanics in which physical quantities are represented by matrices and matrix algebra is used to predict the outcome of physical measurements.

Example Sentences

Heisenberg had developed his version of quantum mechanics, separate from Schrödinger’s wave mechanics, known as matrix mechanics.

From Salon

At almost the same time the German physicist Werner Heisenberg came up with a competing theory called matrix mechanics.

From Literature

As befits the concept of complementarity, there are two completely different but ultimately equivalent mathematical formulations of quantum phenomena — Erwin Schrodinger’s wave equation and Werner Heisenberg’s matrix mechanics, the latter highlighting particle-like behavior.

From Washington Post

He sighed, “A bit behind the times, that’s the trouble with him. He clings to matrix mechanics as the all in all, and this problem calls for more powerful mathematical tools. He’s so stubborn.”

From Literature

We passed tiny villages and isolated country estates, and a few of the solitary towers where the matrix mechanics worked alone with the secret sciences of Darkover, towers of glareless stone which sometimes shone like blue beacons in the dark.

From Project Gutenberg