partition function,
n.
1. the function, defined on the positive integers, that counts the number of distinct partitions (sense 2) of a given argument; for example, p(4) = 5 while p(5) = 7; in general, p(n) is asymptotically equal to
2. the summation, of importance in statistical physics, given by
where the summation is over all possible states of the system, Ei is the energy of the i th state, k is a constant that relates the mean kinetic energy and the absolute temperature, T, of the system.
2. the summation, of importance in statistical physics, given bywhere the summation is over all possible states of the system, Ei is the energy of the i th state, k is a constant that relates the mean kinetic energy and the absolute temperature, T, of the system.