Free energy

Free energy may refer to:

Science

  • Free energy perturbation, a method based on statistical mechanics used in computational chemistry
  • Free energy principle, a variational formulation of self-organisation in biological systems, applied in particular to neuroscience
  • Free-energy relationship, a relationship in physical organic chemistry
  • Principle of minimum energy, a thermodynamic formulation based on the second law
  • Thermodynamic free energy, the energy in a physical system that can be converted to do work, including:
    • Gibbs free energy
    • Landau free energy (also known as grand potential)
    • Helmholtz free energy
  • Variational free energy, a construct from information theory that is used in variational Bayesian methods

Pseudoscience

  • Free energy device, a hypothetical perpetual motion device that is supposedly capable of drawing energy from a hidden free energy field, which is unknown in science
  • Free energy suppression conspiracy theory, in which advanced energy technologies are suppressed by governments or special interest groups
  • History of perpetual motion machines, history of devices supposedly capable of drawing unlimited energy

Other uses

  • In economics, energy from sources that do not require an input which has to be paid for (usually a sub-set of renewable energy)
  • Free Energy (band), a 5-piece rock band on DFA Records


Topics referred to by the same term
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