A quantum mechanical pressure that arises when particles are packed so densely that they approach the limits imposed by the Pauli exclusion principle. This pressure supports white dwarf and neutron stars against gravitational collapse.
From Latin 'degeneratus' meaning 'departed from its kind' and 'pressura' meaning 'action of pressing.' The term emerged from quantum mechanics in the 1920s when physicists realized that matter under extreme conditions behaves differently from ordinary gas.
Degeneracy pressure is what prevents white dwarfs from collapsing into black holes - it's a purely quantum effect that has no classical analog! This pressure doesn't depend on temperature, which is why white dwarfs can cool for billions of years while maintaining their size.
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