to undergo or cause to undergo a process in which a substance, usually a gas, accumulates on the surface of a solid forming a thin film, often only one molecule thick
to adsorb hydrogen on nickel
oxygen adsorbs on tungsten
Compare absorb (sense 8)
Derived forms
adsorbable (adˈsorbable)
adjective
adsorbability (adˌsorbaˈbility)
noun
adsorption (adˈsorption)
noun
Word origin
C19: ad- + -sorb as in absorb
adsorb in American English
(ædˈsɔrb; ædˈzɔrb)
verb transitive
to collect (a gas, liquid, or dissolved substance) in condensed form on a surface