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Atom-Spiral


The atom-spiral, also known as the atomic spiral, is the curve with polar equation

 r=theta/(theta-a)

for a real parameter a (van Maldeghem 2002).

AtomSpiral1

When theta is allows to vary over positive and negative values (excluding theta=a), curves like the ones illustrated above, shown for a variety of parameters a, result.

AtomSpiral2

When theta is allows to vary over angles theta>a, curves like teh above are obtained.


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References

2dcurves.com. "Atomic Spiral." https://www.2dcurves.com/spiral/spiralas.html.van Maldeghem, A. "A Remarkable Spiral." Symmetry: Art and Science, Vol. 2, Nos. 1-4. Special Issue: Papers Presented at the Matomium Euro-Workshop, a Regional Congress of ISIS-Symmetry, Supported by the European Commission. pp. 305-311, 2002.

Cite this as:

Weisstein, Eric W. "Atom-Spiral." From MathWorld--A Wolfram Web Resource. https://mathworld.wolfram.com/Atom-Spiral.html

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