Diffraktiv

Diffraktiv is the German adjective meaning “diffractive” and is used in physics to describe phenomena governed by diffraction in either optics or high-energy physics. Broadly, a diffraktiv process involves wave spreading or the exchange of a near color-singlet object that leads to distinctive final states, such as interference patterns or rapidity gaps in particle collisions.

In optics, diffraktive effects arise when light encounters apertures, edges, or diffraction gratings. The resulting intensity distributions depend on wavelength and geometry and cannot be fully explained by simple ray optics; diffraction gratings and diffractive lenses are common examples.

In high-energy physics, diffractive processes are interactions in which the exchanged object between colliding hadrons is color-neutral, often modeled as the pomeron. These events typically feature a large rapidity gap and may leave one or both beam particles intact or in a low-mass excited state. Classifications include single diffractive, double diffractive, and central exclusive production. Diffractive deep inelastic scattering studies at HERA, and subsequent experiments at the LHC and Tevatron, have illuminated the partonic structure of the diffractive exchange and tested related QCD factorization properties.

The term is common in German-language literature; in English-language contexts, the adjective diffractive is used, with diffractive phenomena described accordingly.