nucleationn.
/ˌnjuːklɪˈeɪʃn/, U.S. /ˌn(j)ukliˈeɪʃ(ə)n/ 1. Science and Engineering. (a) The formation of a nucleus or nuclei; (esp. in Physical Chemistry) the aggregation of molecules into a new phase (as in boiling, condensation, crystallization, etc.); (b) the formation of something (esp. a crystal, droplet, bubble, or crack) into, at, or around a nucleus.
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the world > matter > chemistry > atomic chemistry > [noun] > nucleus > formation of
nucleation1861
nucleating1879
nucleogenesis1952
the world > matter > chemistry > atomic chemistry > [noun] > nuclei > the formation of
nucleation1861
the world > space > relative position > central condition or position > [noun] > central part > formation into a nucleus
nucleation1861
the world > life > biology > substance > cell > cell organelle or contents > [noun] > nucleus > formation of
nucleation1861
1861 H. Macmillan Footnotes from Nature 243 Giving rise either by gemmation or nucleation to new plants.
1892 Amer. Naturalist 26 380 The nucleation is followed by a cellulation and this by a regeneration of germ layers.
1902 Science 31 Jan. 177/1 After nucleation the first dense fogs were vaguely annular during the first..exhaustions.
1906 H. T. Barnes Ice Formation iv. 106 An appropriate term, nucleation, might be applied to the formation of ice-crystals throughout the volume of the water, on nuclei supplied by fine particles of sand.
1941 G. E. Doan & E. M. Mahla Princ. Physical Metall. (ed. 2) vi. 224 In the transformation of a solid solution, such as austenite, the rate of nucleation is limited further by the rates of diffusion of the atoms forming the precipitate.
1950 Engineering 13 Jan. 36/2 If the gas concentration is fairly low and the nucleation of bubbles difficult.
1966 C. R. Tottle Sci. Engin. Materials vii. 167 In b.c.c. metals, some of which do show ductile failure, the nucleation of cavities occurs at piled-up dislocation sites.
1989 B. Alberts et al. Molecular Biol. Cell (ed. 2) xi. 637 Both the nucleation and the polymerization of actin in cells are controlled by various actin-binding proteins.
2. gen. The process, action, or fact of forming, or collecting or gathering around a nucleus, focus, central point, etc.
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1930 Economica 29 217 The small-town problem is therefore whether it is the natural nucleation of small farming, and so must die with it, or whether it can have a life and destiny of its own.
1933 H. G. Wells Shape of Things to Come ii. §3. 158 This chaotic nucleation of human beings about gangs and organizations for frankly criminal purposes.
1952 G. H. Dury Map Interpr. x. 105 We may remark, with Demangeon, that even relief and limited water-supply favour nucleation by limiting the effective choice of sites, whereas broken terrain and abundant water encourage dispersion.
1982 S. Piggot Scotl. before Hist. (ed. 2) iv. 83 The nucleation of settlement they presuppose may have been accompanied by..improved agricultural techniques.
1992 M. Aston Interpreting Landscape (BNC) vii. 82 Villages in the past were nucleations of farms and cottages.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1861