Article
Article
Spin (quantum mechanics)
Article By:
Goebel, Charles J. Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin.
Last reviewed:June 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.645500
The intrinsic angular momentum of a particle. It is that part of the angular momentum of a particle which exists even when the particle is at rest, as distinguished from the orbital angular momentum. The total angular momentum of a particle is the sum of its spin and its orbital angular momentum resulting from its translational motion. The general properties of angular momentum in quantum mechanics imply that spin is quantized in half integral multiples of ℏ (h/2π, where h is Planck's constant); orbital angular momentum is restricted to half even integral multiples of ℏ. A particle is said to have spin , meaning that its spin angular momentum is h. See also: Angular momentum
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