Pienhiukkasissa

Pienhiukkasissa is a Finnish word formed as the inessive plural of pienhiukkanen, meaning “in the small particles.” It indicates location within several small particles and is used in scientific and descriptive Finnish to discuss processes occurring inside such particles.

Morphology and formation: The base is pienhiukkanen (small particle). In the nominative plural the form is pienhiukkaset. To express “in the small particles” the plural stem pienhiukkas- receives the inessive plural suffix -issa, producing pienhiukkasissa. This illustrates Finnish case agreement with number: the plural inessive suffix attaches to the plural stem.

Usage and context: Pienhiukkasissa appears most often in scientific texts, such as physics, chemistry, environmental science, and nanotechnology, when describing phenomena inside microscopic particles or within groups of small particles. The term can refer to micro- or nano-scale particles in everyday language as well as to subsystems inside subatomic contexts, depending on the domain of discussion. It is typically contrasted with pienhiukkaset (the small particles themselves) or pienhiukkanen (a small particle, in general).

Examples:

- Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan valon kulkua pienhiukkasissa.

- Ilmakehän aerosoleihin kohdistuvia mittauksia voidaan tehdä pienhiukkasissa esiintyvien epäpuhtauksien perusteella.

See also: pienhiukkanen, pienhiukkaset, hiukkanen.