eigenvector

Etymology

eigen- + vector, a partial calque of German Eigenvektor. The prefix eigen- (also used in eigenvalue) was first used in 1904, by David Hilbert, and was possibly inspired by a related usage by Hermann von Helmholtz.

noun

1. (linear algebra) A vector that is not rotated under a particular linear transformation; a left or right eigenvector depending on context; (more formally) given a linear transformation A, a vector x such that Ax=λx [or xA=λx] for some scalar λ (called the eigenvalue).
2. (physics, engineering) A right eigenvector; given a matrix A, the eigenvector of the transformation "left-side multiplication by A."