teilfaktorielle

Teilfaktorielle, or teilfaktoriell, is a term used in the field of design of experiments (DOE) to describe a partially factorial design. It refers to experimental plans that do not test every possible combination of factor levels, instead selecting a subset of runs to obtain information about main effects and some interactions while reducing the experimental effort and resources required.

In practical use, teilfaktorielle designs aim to balance information and efficiency. By carefully choosing a smaller set of factor combinations, researchers can estimate principal effects and targeted interactions, though some effects may be aliased with others due to the reduced run count. The degree of aliasing and the interpretability of results depend on the specific design chosen, often described by its resolution. Higher-resolution teilfaktorielle designs separate more effects, at the cost of more runs, while lower-resolution designs trade some detail for greater economy.

Relation to other terms is central: a full factorial design (vollfaktoriell) tests all combinations and yields unambiguous estimates but can be resource-intensive. Teilfaktorielle (or fractional/fractional factorial) designs are common when screening many factors to identify those that matter most. They frequently employ orthogonal arrays and other combinatorial constructions to control confounding and to facilitate interpretation of main effects and selected interactions.

Etymology and usage notes: the prefix teil- means “partial” or “part,” and faktoriell derives from faktor, factor, in the sense of factorial experimentation. The term appears mainly in German-language statistics and engineering literature and is used to describe a pragmatic, resource-oriented class of experimental designs.