conformal

Etymology

conform + -al.

adj

1. That conforms, especially to the shape of something.
   Some are realizable in practical computational times; others giving ‘more conformal’ 3D dose distributions take longer and some invoke technology which is not readily available, such as intensity-modulated fields. 1993, S. Webb, The Physics of Three Dimensional Radiation Therapy: Conformal Radiotherapy, Radiosurgery and Treatment Planning, IOP Publishing, page 335
   CVD is generally more conformal than physical vapor deposition, meaning that it covers a rough surface relatively uniformly, tracking the morphology rather than resulting in thin, low-quality coatings on vertical walls of the substrate, as is the case for physical vapor deposition methods. 2007, Angus Rockett, The Materials Science of Semiconductors, Springer, page 573
   One method for delivering high doses of radiation to a small area is by using more conformal types of radiotherapy. 2011, Gregory J. Kubicek, Dwight E. Heron, “Optimizing Treatment Strategies in Recurrent Head and Neck Strategies”, in Dwight E. Heron, Roy B. Tishler, editors, Head and Neck Cancer, Demos Medical Publishing, page 256
2. (mathematics, of a transformation) That preserves angles between intersecting curves.
   1991 [Elsevier Science], Roland Schinzinger, Patricio A. A. Laura, Conformal Mapping: Methods and Applications, 2003, Dover, page 508, This would have been tantamount to a conformal transformation.
   Let us find all conformal transformations in d dimensions. 1999, Malte Henkel, Conformal Invariance and Critical Phenomena, Springer, page 46
   In regions of S where the packings become more deeply embedded in purely hexagonal generations during refinement, the local dilatation approaches 1 and the maps become progressively more conformal. 2004, Philip L. Bowers, Kenneth Stephenson, Uniformizing Dessins and Bely? Maps Via Circle Packing, American Mathematical Society, page 77
3. (cartography, of a map projection) That preserves relative angles over small scales, at all but a limited number of distinct points.
   On conformal map projections, the scale depends on location only and not direction.