See Also: electron(dictionary)
Electron(medicine)
electron(1)(dictionary)
electron(2)(dictionary)
electron(encyclopedia)
electron gun(medicine)
emission electron(medicine)
microscope, electron(medicine)
electron-volt(medicine)
electron wavelength(medicine)

electron(2) (iou)



electron noun2. L19.
[from ELECTRIC + -ON.]
A stable subatomic particle which has a constant charge of negative electricity, is a constituent of all atoms, and is the primary carrier of electric current in solids. Cf. LEPTON noun2.
Auger electron: see AUGER noun2 2. planetary electron: see PLANETARY adjective. positive electron = POSITRON.
Comb.: electron diffraction the diffraction of a beam of electrons by atoms and molecules (used to investigate crystal structure); electron gun a device in which electrons from a heated cathode are emitted as a narrow beam, e.g. in a cathode-ray tube; electron lens a device for focusing a beam of electrons by means of a magnetic or electric field; electron micrograph a magnified image obtained with an electron microscope; electron microscope: using a beam of electrons focused by electron lenses in order to achieve much greater magnification and resolution than is possible with light; electron multiplier a device for amplifying a current of electrons by utilizing secondary emission of electrons at a succession of anodes; electron optics the branch of physics that deals with the behaviour of electrons and electron beams in magnetic and electric fields; electron pair (a) Chemistry two electrons of opposite spin occupying the same orbital in an atom or molecule; (b) Physics an electron and a positron produced together by a high-energy reaction; electron shell: see SHELL noun 23; electron spin resonance resonance in which the transition involved is that of electrons between states of different spin (used to investigate molecular structure etc.); electron tube an evacuated or gas-filled tube in which a current of electrons flows from one electrode to another; electronvolt a unit of energy equal to that gained or lost by an electron moving through a potential difference of 1 volt, equal to 1.6021019 joule (symbol eV).