Struct std::marker::PhantomData

1.0.0 · source ·
pub struct PhantomData<T>
where
    T: ?Sized;
Expand description

Zero-sized type used to mark things that “act like” they own a T.

Adding a PhantomData<T> field to your type tells the compiler that your type acts as though it stores a value of type T, even though it doesn’t really. This information is used when computing certain safety properties.

For a more in-depth explanation of how to use PhantomData<T>, please see the Nomicon.

§A ghastly note 👻👻👻

Though they both have scary names, PhantomData and ‘phantom types’ are related, but not identical. A phantom type parameter is simply a type parameter which is never used. In Rust, this often causes the compiler to complain, and the solution is to add a “dummy” use by way of PhantomData.

§Examples

§Unused lifetime parameters

Perhaps the most common use case for PhantomData is a struct that has an unused lifetime parameter, typically as part of some unsafe code. For example, here is a struct Slice that has two pointers of type *const T, presumably pointing into an array somewhere:

struct Slice<'a, T> {
    start: *const T,
    end: *const T,
}

The intention is that the underlying data is only valid for the lifetime 'a, so Slice should not outlive 'a. However, this intent is not expressed in the code, since there are no uses of the lifetime 'a and hence it is not clear what data it applies to. We can correct this by telling the compiler to act as if the Slice struct contained a reference &'a T:

use std::marker::PhantomData;

struct Slice<'a, T> {
    start: *const T,
    end: *const T,
    phantom: PhantomData<&'a T>,
}

This also in turn infers the lifetime bound T: 'a, indicating that any references in T are valid over the lifetime 'a.

When initializing a Slice you simply provide the value PhantomData for the field phantom:

fn borrow_vec<T>(vec: &Vec<T>) -> Slice<'_, T> {
    let ptr = vec.as_ptr();
    Slice {
        start: ptr,
        end: unsafe { ptr.add(vec.len()) },
        phantom: PhantomData,
    }
}

§Unused type parameters

It sometimes happens that you have unused type parameters which indicate what type of data a struct is “tied” to, even though that data is not actually found in the struct itself. Here is an example where this arises with FFI. The foreign interface uses handles of type *mut () to refer to Rust values of different types. We track the Rust type using a phantom type parameter on the struct ExternalResource which wraps a handle.

use std::marker::PhantomData;
use std::mem;

struct ExternalResource<R> {
   resource_handle: *mut (),
   resource_type: PhantomData<R>,
}

impl<R: ResType> ExternalResource<R> {
    fn new() -> Self {
        let size_of_res = mem::size_of::<R>();
        Self {
            resource_handle: foreign_lib::new(size_of_res),
            resource_type: PhantomData,
        }
    }

    fn do_stuff(&self, param: ParamType) {
        let foreign_params = convert_params(param);
        foreign_lib::do_stuff(self.resource_handle, foreign_params);
    }
}

§Ownership and the drop check

The exact interaction of PhantomData with drop check may change in the future.

Currently, adding a field of type PhantomData<T> indicates that your type owns data of type T in very rare circumstances. This in turn has effects on the Rust compiler’s drop check analysis. For the exact rules, see the drop check documentation.

§Layout

For all T, the following are guaranteed:

  • size_of::<PhantomData<T>>() == 0
  • align_of::<PhantomData<T>>() == 1

Trait Implementations§

1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Clone for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn clone(&self) -> PhantomData<T>

Returns a copy of the value. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

fn clone_from(&mut self, source: &Self)

Performs copy-assignment from source. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Debug for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn fmt(&self, f: &mut Formatter<'_>) -> Result<(), Error>

Formats the value using the given formatter. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Default for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn default() -> PhantomData<T>

Returns the “default value” for a type. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Hash for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn hash<H>(&self, _: &mut H)
where H: Hasher,

Feeds this value into the given Hasher. Read more
1.3.0 · source§

fn hash_slice<H>(data: &[Self], state: &mut H)
where H: Hasher, Self: Sized,

Feeds a slice of this type into the given Hasher. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Ord for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn cmp(&self, _other: &PhantomData<T>) -> Ordering

This method returns an Ordering between self and other. Read more
1.21.0 · source§

fn max(self, other: Self) -> Self
where Self: Sized,

Compares and returns the maximum of two values. Read more
1.21.0 · source§

fn min(self, other: Self) -> Self
where Self: Sized,

Compares and returns the minimum of two values. Read more
1.50.0 · source§

fn clamp(self, min: Self, max: Self) -> Self
where Self: Sized + PartialOrd,

Restrict a value to a certain interval. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> PartialEq for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn eq(&self, _other: &PhantomData<T>) -> bool

Tests for self and other values to be equal, and is used by ==.
1.0.0 · source§

fn ne(&self, other: &Rhs) -> bool

Tests for !=. The default implementation is almost always sufficient, and should not be overridden without very good reason.
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> PartialOrd for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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fn partial_cmp(&self, _other: &PhantomData<T>) -> Option<Ordering>

This method returns an ordering between self and other values if one exists. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

fn lt(&self, other: &Rhs) -> bool

Tests less than (for self and other) and is used by the < operator. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

fn le(&self, other: &Rhs) -> bool

Tests less than or equal to (for self and other) and is used by the <= operator. Read more
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fn gt(&self, other: &Rhs) -> bool

Tests greater than (for self and other) and is used by the > operator. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

fn ge(&self, other: &Rhs) -> bool

Tests greater than or equal to (for self and other) and is used by the >= operator. Read more
1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Copy for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

1.0.0 · source§

impl<T> Eq for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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impl<T> Freeze for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

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impl<T> StructuralPartialEq for PhantomData<T>
where T: ?Sized,

Auto Trait Implementations§

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impl<T> RefUnwindSafe for PhantomData<T>
where T: RefUnwindSafe + ?Sized,

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impl<T> Send for PhantomData<T>
where T: Send + ?Sized,

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impl<T> Sync for PhantomData<T>
where T: Sync + ?Sized,

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impl<T> Unpin for PhantomData<T>
where T: Unpin + ?Sized,

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impl<T> UnwindSafe for PhantomData<T>
where T: UnwindSafe + ?Sized,

Blanket Implementations§

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impl<T> Any for T
where T: 'static + ?Sized,

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fn type_id(&self) -> TypeId

Gets the TypeId of self. Read more
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impl<T> Borrow<T> for T
where T: ?Sized,

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fn borrow(&self) -> &T

Immutably borrows from an owned value. Read more
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impl<T> BorrowMut<T> for T
where T: ?Sized,

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fn borrow_mut(&mut self) -> &mut T

Mutably borrows from an owned value. Read more
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impl<T> CloneToUninit for T
where T: Clone,

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unsafe fn clone_to_uninit(&self, dst: *mut T)

🔬This is a nightly-only experimental API. (clone_to_uninit #126799)
Performs copy-assignment from self to dst. Read more
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impl<T> From<T> for T

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fn from(t: T) -> T

Returns the argument unchanged.

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impl<T, U> Into<U> for T
where U: From<T>,

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fn into(self) -> U

Calls U::from(self).

That is, this conversion is whatever the implementation of From<T> for U chooses to do.

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impl<T> ToOwned for T
where T: Clone,

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type Owned = T

The resulting type after obtaining ownership.
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fn to_owned(&self) -> T

Creates owned data from borrowed data, usually by cloning. Read more
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fn clone_into(&self, target: &mut T)

Uses borrowed data to replace owned data, usually by cloning. Read more
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impl<T, U> TryFrom<U> for T
where U: Into<T>,

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type Error = Infallible

The type returned in the event of a conversion error.
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fn try_from(value: U) -> Result<T, <T as TryFrom<U>>::Error>

Performs the conversion.
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impl<T, U> TryInto<U> for T
where U: TryFrom<T>,

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type Error = <U as TryFrom<T>>::Error

The type returned in the event of a conversion error.
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fn try_into(self) -> Result<U, <U as TryFrom<T>>::Error>

Performs the conversion.