Definition of "polarizability" []

• The relative tendency of a system of electric charges to become polarized in the presence of an external electric field (noun)

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• "Eli, is polarizability really all that relevant here ?"
• "The polarizability of atoms scales inversely with the charge density, thus hydrogen could get pretty close to a neutral molecule before the dispersion forces took over."
• "To be sure, decreasing the polarizability will tend to pull sigma, the point where the red curve crosses the x axis, outward, so there is some effect, but I don't think it's enough to explain RayP's observation."