Lorentz factor

Meanings

1. a factor arising in special relativity, to calculate the degree of time dilation, length contraction and relativistic mass of an object moving relative to an observer, defined as (1-v²/c²)^(-0.5), where v and c are relative velocity and the speed of light, respectively

Etymology

From its appearance in Lorentzian electrodynamics, named after Dutch physicist Hendrik Lorentz.