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Symbols · Greek letters

φ Φ Phi

Say it: “phi” · FIE (rhymes with "pie"), also FEE

What it means

The twenty-first Greek letter, printed as φ or ϕ. It is an angle or a phase, the golden ratio (about 1.618), Euler's totient function and the standard normal density. Capital Φ is the cumulative standard normal distribution, and magnetic or electric flux.

Read aloud in real formulas

Geometry

φ = (1 + √5) / 2

Aethel says

phi equals the quantity 1 plus the square root of 5, over 2

the golden ratio

Statistics

P(Z ≤ z) = Φ(z)

Aethel says

the probability that Z is less than or equal to z, equals capital phi of z

the standard normal distribution function

Electromagnetism

Φ = BA

Aethel says

capital phi equals B A

magnetic flux through an area

Typing it

LaTeX
\phi, \varphi, \Phi
Unicode
U+03C6, U+03D5, U+03A6

Questions

How do you pronounce phi (φ)?

It is said “phi”, roughly FIE (rhymes with "pie"), also FEE.

What does φ mean in maths?

The twenty-first Greek letter, printed as φ or ϕ. It is an angle or a phase, the golden ratio (about 1.618), Euler's totient function and the standard normal density. Capital Φ is the cumulative standard normal distribution, and magnetic or electric flux.

How do you type φ?

In LaTeX, write \phi, \varphi, \Phi. Its Unicode code point is U+03C6, U+03D5, U+03A6.

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