diffraction
noun/dɪˈfɹækʃən/
Etymology From New Latin diffrāctiō (in which coined by Francesco Maria Grimaldi), from Latin diffrāctus, past participle of Latin diffringo (“to shatter, to break into pieces”). Coined in Physico-mathesis de lumine (1665) by Francesco Maria Grimaldi.
1
Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Physics The bending of a wave around an obstacle.
2
The breaking up of an electromagnetic wave as it passes a geometric structure (e.g. a slit), followed by reconstruction of the wave by interference.
Quantum mechanics