Weaire-Phelan structure

noun

A three-dimensional structure representing an idealized foam of equal-sized bubbles, with two different shapes.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounWeaire-Phelan structure (plural Weaire-Phelan structures)

plural Weaire-Phelan structures

  1. geometryA three-dimensional structure representing an idealized foam of equal-sized bubbles, with two different shapes.

Origin

Named after Denis Weaire and Robert Phelan, who in 1993 found that this structure was a better solution to the Kelvin problem of tiling space by equal-volume cells of minimum surface area than the previous best-known solution, the Kelvin structure.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Weaire-Phelan structure. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Weaire-Phelan%20structure

MLA

“Weaire-Phelan structure.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Weaire-Phelan%20structure. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Weaire-Phelan structure,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Weaire-Phelan%20structure.

Source: Weaire-Phelan structure on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.