Difference between revisions of "Phantom type"
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+ | A '''phantom type''' is a [[type]] used only to construct other types; its values are never used. Phantom types are useful in a variety of contexts: in the standard <hask>Data.Fixed</hask> module they are used with type classes to encode the precision being used, with [[smart constructors]] or GADTs they can encode information about how and where a value can be used, or with more exotic extensions they can be used in [[type arithmetic]] or for [[Smart_constructors#Enforcing_the_constraint_statically|encoding bounds checks in the type system.]] |
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− | A '''phantom type''' is a [[type]] used only to construct other types; |
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− | its values are never used. Phantom types are used in [[Type arithmetic]], and for |
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− | [http://haskell.org/haskellwiki/Smart_constructors#Enforcing_the_constraint_statically encoding bounds checks in the type system.] |
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An extension to Haskell 98 supported by [[GHC]] allows you to define datatypes without any constructors (and therefore no values other than [[bottom]]): |
An extension to Haskell 98 supported by [[GHC]] allows you to define datatypes without any constructors (and therefore no values other than [[bottom]]): |
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</haskell> |
</haskell> |
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− | This lets the compiler recognize phantom types and ensure they aren't used improperly. |
+ | This lets the compiler (and programmer!) recognize phantom types and ensure they aren't used improperly. |
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− | ---- |
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− | The term "phantom type" already has an established use. A simple case is described (somewhat messily) in [[http://haskell.org/hawiki/PhantomTypes]]. [[http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Phantom+types%22 This]] Google search lists many other uses of the term in that vein. |
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==The use of a type system to guarantee well-formedness.== |
==The use of a type system to guarantee well-formedness.== |
Revision as of 03:55, 22 December 2010
A phantom type is a type used only to construct other types; its values are never used. Phantom types are useful in a variety of contexts: in the standard Data.Fixed
module they are used with type classes to encode the precision being used, with smart constructors or GADTs they can encode information about how and where a value can be used, or with more exotic extensions they can be used in type arithmetic or for encoding bounds checks in the type system.
An extension to Haskell 98 supported by GHC allows you to define datatypes without any constructors (and therefore no values other than bottom):
data MyType
This lets the compiler (and programmer!) recognize phantom types and ensure they aren't used improperly.
The use of a type system to guarantee well-formedness.
We create a Parameterized type in which the parameter does not appear on the rhs (shameless cutting and pasting from Daan Leijen and Erik Meijer)
data Expr a = Expr PrimExpr
constant :: Show a => a -> Expr a
(.+.) :: Expr Int -> Expr Int -> Expr Int
(.==.) :: Eq a=> Expr a-> Expr a-> Expr Bool
(.&&.) :: Expr Bool -> Expr Bool-> Expr Bool
data PrimExpr
= BinExpr BinOp PrimExpr PrimExpr
| UnExpr UnOp PrimExpr
| ConstExpr String
data BinOp
= OpEq | OpAnd | OpPlus | ...
i.e. the datatype is such that we could get garbage such as
BinExpr OpEq (ConstExpr "1") (ConstExpr "\"foo\"")
but since we only expose the functions our attempts to create this expression via
constant 1 .==. constant "foo"
would fail to typecheck
I believe this technique is used when trying to interface with a language that would cause a runtime exception if the types were wrong but would have a go at running the expression first. (They use it in the context of SQL but I have also seen it in the context of FLI work.)
-- ChrisAngus
A foundation for embedded languages provides some formal background for embedding typed languages in Haskell, and also its references give a fairly comprehensive survey of uses of phantom types and related techniques.