Solid

A solid is a phase of matter characterized by resistance to deformation and to changes of volume.

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At the microscopic scale, a solid has these properties:

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• The atoms or molecules that comprise the solid are packed close together.
• These constituent elements have fixed positions in space relative to each other. This accounts for the solid's rigidity.
• If sufficient force is applied, either of these properties can be violated, causing permanent deformation.
• Because any solid has some thermal energy, its atoms vibrate. However, this movement is very small and very rapid, and cannot be observed under ordinary conditions.

The branch of physics that deals with solids is called solid-state physics, and is a type of condensed matter physics. Materials science is primarily concerned with properties of solids such as strength and phase transformations. It overlaps strongly with solid state physics. Solid-state chemistry overlaps both of these fields, but is especially concerned with the synthesis of novel materials.

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The lightest known solid is man-made and is called aerogel. The lightest aerogel produced has a density of 1.9 mg per cm3 or 1.9 kg/m3 (526.3 times lighter than water).

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Solid: See also ►



 

Phase: Phase, from the Greek phasis, meaning 'appearance', has a number of related meanings in English....

Matter: Matter is commonly referred to as the substance of which physical objects are composed. In physics, it is everything that is constituted of elementary fermions. Philosophically, matter constitutes the formless substratum of all things, which exists only potentially and from which reality is produced...

Deformation: In engineering mechanics, deformation is a change in shape due to an applied force. This can be a result of tensile (pulling) forces, compressive (pushing) forces, shear, bending or torsion (twisting)....




Solid related Images and Photos (experimental)

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