spectral color

(noun)

a color that is evoked by a single wavelength of light in the visible spectrum, or by a relatively narrow band of wavelengths. Every wavelength of light is perceived as a spectral color, in a continuous spectrum; the colors of sufficiently close wavelengths are indistinguishable.

Related Terms

Examples of spectral color in the following topics:

  • Visible Light

    • The spectrum does not, however, contain all the colors that the human eyes and brain can distinguish.
    • The figure above shows this part of the spectrum, together with the colors associated with particular pure wavelengths.
    • Colors that can be produced by visible light of a narrow band of wavelengths (monochromaticlight) are called pure spectral colors.
    • Quantitatively, the regions of the visible spectrum encompassing each spectral color can be delineated roughly as:
    • Note that each color can come in many shades, since the spectrum is continuous.

  • RBC Anatomy

    • The RBCs' distinctive red color is due to the spectral properties of the binding of hemic iron ions in hemoglobin.

  • Emission Spectrum of the Hydrogen Atom

    • The emission spectrum of atomic hydrogen is divided into a number of spectral series.
    • All observed spectral lines are due to electrons moving between energy levels in the atom.
    • The spectral series are important in astronomy for detecting the presence of hydrogen and calculating red shifts.
    • The spectral lines are grouped into series according to n′.
    • The fine structure also results in single spectral lines appearing as two or more closely grouped thinner lines due to relativistic corrections.

  • Color

    • In the visual arts, color theory is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual impacts of specific color combinations.
    • Color theory is centered around the color wheel, a diagram that shows the relationship of the various colors to each other .
    • Color "value" refers to the relative lightness or darkness of a color.
    • Additive color is color created by mixing red, green, and blue lights.
    • Subtractive color,  or "process color," works as the reverse of additive color and the primary colors become cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK).

  • Unity and Variety

    • Color Harmony or Color Theory is considered a foundational composition principle of harmony that outlines the application of color in art.
    • In the visual arts, color theory is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual impacts of specific color combination.
    • There are also definitions (or categories) of colors based on the color wheel: primary color, secondary color and tertiary color.
    • These contrasts form the basis of Chevreul's law of color contrast: colors that appear together will be altered as if mixed with the complementary color of the other color.
    • In color theory, neutral colors are colors easily modified by adjacent more saturated colors and they appear to take on the hue complementary to the saturated color.

  • Color Schemes

    • A color scheme is the choice of colors that are used in range of media.
    • Color theory is centered around the color wheel, a diagram that shows the relationship of the various colors to each other .
    • In color theory, a color scheme is the choice of colors that are used in range of media.
    • Analogous colors are groups of colors that are adjacent to each other on the color wheel, with one being the dominant color (typically a primary or secondary color) and two on either side complementing (most often tertiary colors).
    • Color theory is centered around the color wheel, a diagram that shows the relationship of the various colors to each other.

  • Planck's Quantum Hypothesis and Black Body Radiation

    • where $B$ is the spectral radiance of the surface of the black body, $T$ is its absolute temperature, $\lambda$ is wavelength of the radiation, $k_B$ is the Boltzmann constant, $h$ is the Planck constant, and $c$ is the speed of light.
    • Note that the spectral radiance depends on two variables, wavelength and temperature.

  • X-Rays

    • This process produces an emission spectrum of x-rays at a few discrete frequencies, sometimes referred to as the spectral lines.
    • The spectral lines generated depend on the target (anode) element used and therefore are called characteristic lines.

  • Power-Law Distribution of Particle Energies

    • If the range of the power-law distribution is sufficiently large (at least an order of magnitude) we can take $x_1\rightarrow 0$ and $x_2 \rightarrow \infty$ in (23) so that the integral is simply a constant and we find that the spectral distribution is also a power-law $\omega^{-s}$ with a power-law index of $s=(p-1)/2$.

  • Basic Color Vocabulary

    • Primary and secondary colors are combined in various ways to create "tertiary colors".
    • Color theory is centered around the color wheel, a diagram that shows the relationship of the various colors to each other .
    • "Subtractive" color theory or "process color" works as the reverse of additive color theory.
    • In subtractive color theory the primary colors are yellow, cyan and magenta.
    • Color theory is centered around the color wheel, a diagram that shows the relationship of the various colors to each other.