In the theory of computation, a nondeterministic finite state machine or nondeterministic finite automaton (NFA) is a finite state machine where for each pair of state and input symbol there may be several possible next states. This distinguishes it from the deterministic finite automaton (DFA), where the next possible state is uniquely determined. Although the DFA and NFA have distinct definitions, it may be shown in the formal theory that they are equivalent, in that, for any given NFA, one may construct an equivalent DFA, and vice-versa: this is the powerset construction. Both types of automata recognize only regular languages. Non-deterministic finite state machines are sometimes studied by the name subshifts of finite type. Non-deterministic finite state machines are generalized by probabilistic automata, which assign a probability to each state transition.
Nondeterministic finite automata were introduced by Michael O. Rabin and Dana Scott in 1959, who showed their equivalence to deterministic automata.
Reference:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nondeterministic_finite_state_machine
