adjective

• 1Physics
  Characterized by opposite or alternating polarity.

  ‘All cells in the colony are heteropolar, and all setae are directed toward one end of the chain.’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Valves bilaterally symmetrical, isopolar and circular, or heteropolar and subcircular or ± elliptical, with one pole smoothly rounded and the other very slightly pointed.’
  • ‘A typical heteropolar magnetic bearing system is shown in the figure below.’
  • ‘The low-frequency noise spectral density with the 1 / f spectrum for homopolar and heteropolar semi-conductors is theoretically obtained taking into account conduction electron - optical phonon interactions.’
  • ‘By contrast, the reversible stage of photoinduced effects were caused by two different types of transformations - heteropolar bonds switching in homopolar ones, as well as heteropolar bridge bonds switching in short layer ones.’

  1. 1.1(especially of an electric motor) with an armature passing north and south magnetic poles alternately.