Definition

1. Noun:
   • (Physics) A numerical measure of a material's stiffness: The coefficient of elasticity is the ratio of the stress (force per unit area) applied to a material to the resulting strain (deformation) within the material's elastic limit. It quantifies how much a material resists being deformed when a force is applied.

Usage and Examples

• Noun:
  • The coefficient of elasticity for steel is much higher than that of rubber, meaning it deforms less under the same stress.
  • Engineers must know the coefficient of elasticity of concrete to design safe structures.
  • In the lab, we calculated the coefficient of elasticity by measuring the stress and strain on the metal sample.

Advanced Usage and Context

• "Young's modulus": This is the most common specific name for the coefficient of elasticity when describing tensile or compressive stress in a linear elastic material.
  • Young's modulus, the coefficient of elasticity for tension, is a fundamental property in materials science.
• Context in Hooke's Law: The coefficient of elasticity is the constant of proportionality (k) in Hooke's Law (Stress = k * Strain) for an elastic material.
  • According to Hooke's Law, the stress is directly proportional to the strain, with the coefficient of elasticity as the constant.

Variants and Related Terms

• Elastic modulus (n): A more general term synonymous with coefficient of elasticity.
• Modulus of elasticity (n): Another exact synonym for coefficient of elasticity.
• Young's modulus (n): The specific modulus for linear tensile/compressive elasticity.
• Shear modulus (n): The modulus of elasticity for shear stress.
• Bulk modulus (n): The modulus of elasticity for uniform compression.

Synonyms

• Elastic modulus
• Modulus of elasticity

Related Phrases and Concepts

• Stress-strain curve: A graph that shows the relationship between stress and strain for a material; the linear portion's slope is the coefficient of elasticity.
  • The initial slope of the stress-strain curve gives the coefficient of elasticity.
• Within the elastic limit: Refers to the range of stress where a material will return to its original shape after the force is removed, governed by its coefficient of elasticity.
  • As long as the stress is within the elastic limit, deformation is predictable using the coefficient of elasticity.

Noun

1. (physics) the ratio of the applied stress to the change in shape of an elastic body