Meanings
- natural sciencesA fault in classical physics, from the Rayleigh's law/Rayleigh-Jeans law outcomes at short wavelengths/high frequencies, that causes infinite amplification of shorter wavelength/higher frequency radiation inside a cavity, due to the application of equipartition theorem on black body radiation within a cavity.
Synonyms: Rayleigh-Jeans catastrophe, Rayleigh catastrophe, Rayleigh's catastrophe
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA fault in classical physics, from the Rayleigh's law/Rayleigh-Jeans law outcomes at short wavelengths/high frequencies, that causes infinite amplification of shorter wavelength/higher frequency radiation inside a cavity, due to the application of equipartition theorem on black body radiation within a cavity.
Origin
Coined by Paul Ehrenfest in 1911 in German. Ultraviolet represents that end of the spectrum, given that the visible spectrum represents a stand-in for the whole electromagnetic spectrum, and infrared and ultraviolet are stand-ins for the endpoints. This usage is similar to that represented by the logic behind the terms "redshift" and "blueshift", which assume endpoints of red and blue.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
ultraviolet catastrophe. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultraviolet%20catastrophe
“ultraviolet catastrophe.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultraviolet%20catastrophe. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ultraviolet catastrophe,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ultraviolet%20catastrophe.
Source: ultraviolet catastrophe on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.