Invariant (physics)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

In mathematics and theoretical physics, an invariant is that which remains unchanged under some transformation. Examples of invariants include the speed of light under a Lorentz transformation and time under a Galilean transformation. Many such transformations represent shifts between different possible observers, and so by Noether's Theorem invariance under the transformation represents a fundamental conservation law.

Invariants are very important in modern theoretical physics, and many theories are in fact expressed in terms of their symmetries and invariants.

Covariance and contravariance generalize the mathematical properties of invariance in tensor mathematics.

  • French, A.P. (1968). Special Relativity. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0393097935. 
 This physics-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invariant_%28physics%29"
Advanced Search
Included Web Search Engines


Safe Search

close

Top Matching Results

Occasionally Search.com will highlight specialized results that are based on the context of your query. Examples of specialized results include specific links to news, images, or video.

Top Matching Results may highlight information from other Search.com pages, content from the CNET Network of sites, or third party content. The listings are based purely on relevance. Search.com does not receive payment for listings in this section but our partners that provide this data may get paid for listing these products.

Sponsored Links

This section contains paid listings which have been purchased by companies that want to have their sites appear for specific search terms and related content. These listings are administered, sorted and maintained by a third party and are not endorsed by Search.com.

Search Results

Search.com sends your search query to several search engines at one time and integrates the results into one list which has been sorted by relevance using Search.com's proprietary algorithm. You can customize the list of search engines included in your metasearch from the preferences.

The search engines that are used in your metasearch may allow companies to pay to have their Web sites included within the results. To view the Paid Inclusion policy for a specific search engine, please visit their Web site. Search.com does not accept payment or share revenue with any search engine partner for listings in this section.