v. i.
Neither knows he . . . how the solid parts of the body are united or cohere together. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]
They have been inserted where they best seemed to cohere. Burke. [ 1913 Webster ]
Had time cohered with place, or place with wishing. Shak.
Coherence of discourse, and a direct tendency of all the parts of it to the argument in hand, are most eminently to be found in him. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]
a. [ L. cohaerens, p. pr. See Cohere. ]
Instruct my daughter how she shall persever,
That time and place, with this deceit so lawful,
May prove coherent. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]
n. (Physics, Optics) Light in which the phases of all electromagnetic waves at each point on a line normal to the direction of the the beam are identical. Coherent light is usually monochromatic, and the most common source of such light for practical uses is from a laser. The constant phase relations of coherent light allows the achievement of certain effects, such as holography, not possible with noncoherent light. The low degree of angular dispersion of coherent light beams also allows the use of such light in laser ranging, over distances as far as from the earth to the moon. [ PJC ]
adv. In a coherent manner. [ 1913 Webster ]
n. (Elec.) Any device in which an imperfectly conducting contact between pieces of metal or other conductors loosely resting against each other is materially improved in conductivity by the influence of Hertzian waves; -- so called by Sir O. J. Lodge in 1894 on the assumption that the impact of the electic waves caused the loosely connected parts to cohere, or weld together, a condition easily destroyed by tapping. A common form of coherer as used in wireless telegraphy consists of a tube containing filings (usually a pinch of nickel and silver filings in equal parts) between terminal wires or plugs (called
conductor plugs). [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]