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Something that is bistable can be resting in two states. In physics, for an ensemble of particles, the bistability comes from the fact that its free energy has three critical points. Two of them are minima and the last is a maximum. By mathematical arguments, the maximum must lie between the two minima. By default, the system state will be in either of the minima states, because that corresponds to the state of lowest energy. The maximum can be visualised as a barrier. The word ensemble can refer to a musical ensemble an ensemble cast (drama) a statistical ensemble in mathematical physics, for example a thermodynamic ensemble a quantum ensemble a fluid mechanical ensemble a Climate Ensemble ensemble forecasting (meteorology) ensemble averaging a distribution ensemble (maths) a neural ensemble a DAB ensemble Ensemble...
The free energy is a measure of the amount of mechanical (or other) work that can be extracted from a system, and is helpful in engineering applications. ...
The term critical point can mean any of: critical point (thermodynamics) critical point (mathematics) critical loops (topology) critical point (set theory) This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ...
The largest and the smallest element of a set are called extreme values, or extreme records. ...
The largest and the smallest element of a set are called extreme values, or extreme records. ...
A transition between the state of minimal free energy needs some form of activation energy to penetrate the barrier (compare activation energy and Arrhenius equation for the chemical case.) After the barrier has been reached, the system will relax into the next state of lowest energy again. The time it takes is usually attributed the relaxation time. (There might be uncertainty as to which state will be the new one, but it is often well defined in the situation.) The sparks generated by striking steel against a flint provide the activation energy to initiate combustion in this Bunsen burner. ...
The Arrhenius equation is a simple, but remarkably accurate, formula for the temperature dependence of a chemical reaction rate. ...
Relaxation time is a general physics concept for the characteristic time in which a system relaxes under certain changes in external conditions. ...
Optical bistability is an attribute of certain optical devices where two resonant transmissions states are possible and stable, dependent on the input. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
See also
In physics, the ferroelectric effect is an electrical phenomenon whereby certain ionic crystals may exhibit a spontaneous dipole moment. ...
Ferromagnetism is a phenomenon by which a material can exhibit a spontaneous magnetization, and is one of the strongest forms of magnetism. ...
Hysteresis is a property of systems (usually physical systems) that do not instantly follow the forces applied to them, but react slowly, or do not return completely to their original state: that is, systems whose states depend on their immediate history. ...
the phenomenon of alterations between distinct interpretations of the same percept , e. ...
An astable multivibrator is an electronic circuit that has two states, neither one of which is stable. ...
A monostable multivibrator is an electronic circuit that has two states, only one of which is stable. ...
In electronics, a Schmitt (or Schmidt) trigger is a special kind of comparator circuit. ...
External links - http://www.answers.com/topic/optical-bistability
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