korpuskular

Korpuskular is a term used in physics and related disciplines to denote particle-like behavior or models that treat matter or radiation as consisting of discrete units called corpuscles. The word is cognate with the English corpuscular and derives from Latin corpusculum, meaning a small body. In various languages, korpuskular or korpuskulär forms appear in scientific texts as translations of corpuscular.

Historically, the korpuskular theory of light proposed by Isaac Newton posited that light is made of tiny particles that travel in straight lines. This view competed with the wave theory developed by Christiaan Huygens and later supported by Maxwell’s electrodynamics. Experiments demonstrating interference and diffraction initially favored wave descriptions, yet later results such as the photoelectric effect and Compton scattering revealed particle-like properties. In modern physics, wave-particle duality integrates both pictures: light and matter can exhibit corpuscular (particle-like) and wavelike characteristics depending on the experimental context. The term korpuskular remains common in historical discussions and in introductory explanations to distinguish particle-based models from wave-based ones.

In contemporary usage, korpuskular is largely a historical or pedagogical descriptor. It appears in non-English texts as a direct translation of corpuscular concepts, or as an adjective to characterize theories or models that assume discrete particles, such as corpuscular radiation or corpuscular components within atomic theory.

See also: corpuscular theory, wave-particle duality, photon, electron, particle physics.