

Flux can be thought of as the fundamental quantity of radiometry the other quantities defined here are geometric or spectral distributions of it. For example, the total amount of light emitted from a light bulb is its flux. Flux (watts): The total optical power emitted from a source in all directions.The four most commonly used geometric descriptions in radiometry are flux, irradiance, intensity and radiance. The angle Ω equals the area a inscribed on the surface of the sphere divided by r 2. The solid angle Ω is measured by drawing a sphere of arbitrary radius r. In 1b, Ω is formed by the locus of all lines connecting O to the curve C. The angle θ equals the length of arc l divided by r. In 1a, the plane angle θ is formed by OA and OB and is measured by drawing a circle with an arbitrary radius r. The concept of solid angle in three dimensions can be thought of as analogous to an ordinary plane angle in two dimensions. The SI unit for each quantity is listed.įigure 1. The rows are identical geometrically but differ spectrally, while the columns share common spectral descriptions and vary in their geometry. Table 1 shows such a separation for the most common radiometric quantities. The geometric and spectral aspects of radiometry are almost always separable from each other, so it makes a lot of sense to discuss them independently. GEOMETRIC AND SPECTRAL ASPECTS OF RADIOMETRY In most cases, the output of the detector is connected to a display that is calibrated to read out the amount of light absorbed by the detector. The most common radiometric detectors produce changes in their electrical properties (generally current, voltage or resistance) or their temperature, which is then measured electrically.
#RADIOMETER POINT MEASURE HOW TO#
We’ll concentrate on the most common of these concepts, talk about how to choose the appropriate one for a specific situation, and discuss how to make meaningful measurements.Īny device that responds to light and produces a measurable output can be used as a radiometer. The usual practice in radiometry is to simplify the possibilities and work with only a few specific geometric and spectral concepts. This leaves out concepts such as polarization and coherence, which are commonly discussed outside the subject of radiometry, but can be important here, too. This article will concentrate on the description and measurement of light.Ī complete description of the light from a source could be extremely complex, involving spatial (at least two, sometimes three dimensions), angular (generally two or more dimensions), and spectral and temporal dimensions. The two most common are the description and measurement of optical radiation, and, starting with the knowledge of some aspects of optical radiation at one location, predicting the measurement that would be made at another.
