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Alphabet archive · D

D glossary entries

D glossary archive with 15 engineering terms across 10 disciplines, linking definitions to canonical Atlas of Engineering branch pages.

quantity Damping Ratio

A dimensionless measure of how strongly oscillations decay in a dynamic system relative to critical damping.

Automation and Control Engineering
device Data Bus

A shared communication pathway that transfers data between components, subsystems, or devices in a digital or embedded system.

Computer Engineering
quantity Dead Time

A delay between a change at a system input and the first observable effect at the output.

Automation and Control Engineering
quantity Deflection

The displacement or rotation of a structural or mechanical element from its original position under load, temperature change, support movement, or imposed deformation.

Civil and Construction Engineering
method Demand Response

Demand response is the controlled change of electricity consumption in response to grid needs, prices, control signals, or emergencies.

Energy Engineering
quantity Density

Mass per unit volume of a material, fluid, mixture, or body under specified temperature, pressure, composition, and state.

Materials Engineering
metric Depth of Discharge

Depth of discharge is the fraction of a battery's rated or reference capacity that has been removed during discharge.

Energy Engineering
quantity Design Load

The load value or load effect used for design after applying the governing combinations, factors, service conditions, and code requirements.

Civil and Construction Engineering
system Diagnostic Imaging

Diagnostic imaging is the use of engineered systems to form visual or quantitative evidence about internal structure, function, or condition.

Biomedical Engineering
phenomenon Diffraction

Diffraction is wave spreading and interference caused by apertures, edges, periodic structures, or features comparable to wavelength.

Engineering Physics
model Digital Twin

A digital representation of a physical asset, process, or system that is updated with operational data to support analysis, prediction, control, or decision-making.

Computer Engineering
device Diode

A two-terminal electronic device that conducts current preferentially in one direction and blocks or limits current in the opposite direction.

Electronic Engineering
method Discretization

The conversion of a continuous model, geometry, domain, signal, or equation into a finite set of elements, cells, samples, nodes, or time steps.

Mathematical Engineering
quantity Displacement

Displacement is the amount of water displaced by a floating body, commonly expressed as displaced volume, mass, or weight.

Naval and Marine Engineering
quantity Ductility

The ability of a material to undergo plastic deformation before fracture, usually assessed through strain, elongation, reduction of area, or deformation capacity.

Materials Engineering