eutectic

Meanings

Adjective

• Describing the chemical composition or temperature of a mixture of substances that gives the lowest temperature at which the mixture becomes fully molten. A further requirement is that that temperature is lower than the melting point of any of the pure component substances.
• Describing the thermodynamic equilibrium conditions where a liquid coexists with two solid phases.

Noun

• A material that has the composition of a eutectic mixture or eutectic alloy
• The temperature of the eutectic point

Origin

• From Ancient Greek εὔτηκτος, from εὖ + τήκω. Coined as an adjective (along with the noun eutexia) by British scientist Frederick Guthrie in 1884.