optical activity

noun

a property caused by asymmetrical molecular or crystal structure that enables a compound or crystal to rotate the plane of incident polarized light

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Meanings

nounoptical activity (plural optical activities)

plural optical activities

  1. natural sciencesa property caused by asymmetrical molecular or crystal structure that enables a compound or crystal to rotate the plane of incident polarized light
  2. chemistryA measure of the amount of optical rotation produced by a standard amount of a substance
Cite this entry
APA

optical activity. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optical%20activity

MLA

“optical activity.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optical%20activity. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “optical activity,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/optical%20activity.

Source: optical activity on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.