commutator

noun

Etymology

Back-formation from commutation (in the late 19th century), as is commutate (verb) too.

Definitions

  1. An electrical switch, in a generator or motor, that periodically reverses the direction…

    An electrical switch, in a generator or motor, that periodically reverses the direction of an electric current.

  2. A binary map in a given group G, given by [g, h] = ghg⁻¹h⁻¹, where g and h are elements…

    A binary map in a given group G, given by [g, h] = ghg⁻¹h⁻¹, where g and h are elements of G, which yields the group's identity if and only if the group operation commutes for g and h.

  3. A binary map in a given ring R, given by [a, b] = ab − ba, where a and b are elements of…

    A binary map in a given ring R, given by [a, b] = ab − ba, where a and b are elements of R, which yields the ring's zero element if and only if the multiplication operation commutes for a and b.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for commutator. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA