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    Calculating Power Density Tech Note 2 PDF

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    oscar_sm77
    This technical note provides a shortcut formula for calculating laser beam power density expressed in W/cm2 from the beam power in Watts and diameter in millimeters. The formula is: Power Density (W/cm2) = 250 × Power (W) / Diameter (mm)2 The formula is derived from the fact that a 1 mm diameter beam has a power density of 127 W/cm2 when multiplied by the beam power in Watts. The 250 factor assumes a Gaussian beam profile and introduces only a small error compared to the exact value of 255.

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    Calculating Power Density Tech Note 2 PDF

    Uploaded by

    oscar_sm77
    84 views1 page
    This technical note provides a shortcut formula for calculating laser beam power density expressed in W/cm2 from the beam power in Watts and diameter in millimeters. The formula is: Power Density (W/cm2) = 250 × Power (W) / Diameter (mm)2 The formula is derived from the fact that a 1 mm diameter beam has a power density of 127 W/cm2 when multiplied by the beam power in Watts. The 250 factor assumes a Gaussian beam profile and introduces only a small error compared to the exact value of 255.

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    This technical note provides a shortcut formula for calculating laser beam power density expressed in W/cm2 from the beam power in Watts and diameter in millimeters. The formula is: Power Density (W/cm2) = 250 × Power (W) / Diameter (mm)2 The formula is derived from the fact that a 1 mm diameter beam has a power density of 127 W/cm2 when multiplied by the beam power in Watts. The 250 factor assumes a Gaussian beam profile and introduces only a small error compared to the exact value of 255.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    84 views1 page

    Calculating Power Density Tech Note 2 PDF

    Uploaded by

    oscar_sm77
    This technical note provides a shortcut formula for calculating laser beam power density expressed in W/cm2 from the beam power in Watts and diameter in millimeters. The formula is: Power Density (W/cm2) = 250 × Power (W) / Diameter (mm)2 The formula is derived from the fact that a 1 mm diameter beam has a power density of 127 W/cm2 when multiplied by the beam power in Watts. The 250 factor assumes a Gaussian beam profile and introduces only a small error compared to the exact value of 255.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 1

    Photonics Technical Note #2

    Power Meters & Detectors

    Calculating Power Density A Shortcut


    It is often necessary to calculate the power density (Power/Area) of a laser beam (for example, when
    trying to determine whether a beam will damage an optic or detector). Usually power density is
    2
    expressed in terms of W/cm . However, laser beam diameters are usually expressed in millimeters.
    Performing this calculation can be tedious, so you may find the following formula useful as a shortcut.

    
       
    = 
    

    where d is the diameter of the laser beam in millimeters.

    For those interested in knowing the origin of this formula, please read on. Otherwise, just enjoy using the
    formula!

    To derive this formula, we start with the easily verifiable fact that the reciprocal of the area of a 1 mm
    -2
    diameter beam is 127 cm .
    -2
    1/A = 127 cm (1 mm diameter beam)

    To get the power density of a 1 mm diameter beam one must simply multiply the power (in Watts) by 127
    -2 2
    cm to get power density (in W/cm ). Or,

    Power Density = 127 Power


    (of 1 mm beam)
    2
    If the beam diameter is 2 mm instead of 1 mm, then the power density will drop by 2 or 4. So divide 127
    by 4, then multiply by power. If the beam diameter is .5 mm, then the power density will increase by 4, so
    multiply 127 x 4, then multiply by power. So, for an arbitrary size beam, the following formula holds:

    127
    Power Density = Power
    d2

    This tacitly assumes that the beam profile is uniform. If the beam has a Gaussian profile, then multiply by
    2 and the formula at the top of this page results. (The multiplication value is actually closer to 255, not
    250, but this difference is trivial, introducing only ~2% error. We use 250 simply because its easier to
    remember and perform mental calculations than 255!)

    BS-10041 11/04

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