# Slater determinant

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. An expression that describes the wavefunction of a multifermionic system. It satisfies antisymmetry requirements, and consequently the Pauli exclusion principle, by changing sign upon exchange of two electrons (or other fermions).

## Etymology
Named after John C. Slater, who introduced the determinant in 1929 as a means of ensuring the antisymmetry of a many-electron wavefunction, although the wavefunction in the determinant form first appeared independently in Heisenberg's and Dirac's articles three years earlier.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/slater-determinant