|
In physics, a coupling constant or gauge coupling parameter is a number that determines the strength of the force exerted in an interaction. Usually, the Lagrangian or the Hamiltonian of a system describing an interaction can be separated into a ''kinetic part'' and an ''interaction part''. The coupling constant determines the strength of the interaction part with respect to the kinetic part, or between two sectors of the interaction part. For example, the electric charge of a particle is a coupling constant. A coupling constant plays an important role in dynamics. For example, one often sets up hierarchies of approximation based on the importance of various coupling constants. In the motion of a large lump of magnetized iron, the magnetic forces may be more important than the gravitational forces because of the relative magnitudes of the coupling constants. However, in classical mechanics one usually makes these decisions directly by comparing forces. ==Fine-structure constant== The coupling constant arises naturally in a quantum field theory. A special role is played in relativistic quantum theories by coupling constants which are dimensionless, i.e., are pure numbers. For example, the fine-structure constant, :: (where is the charge of an electron, is the permittivity of free space, is the reduced Planck constant and is the speed of light) is such a dimensionless coupling constant that determines the strength of the electromagnetic force on an electron. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「coupling constant」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|