ABSTRACT
Robert K Tyson To fully characterize a laser one must measure the energy and the power or, more specifically, the radiant energy in joules (J) and radiant power or energy flux in J s−1. Due to the nature and diversity of lasers, which operate from the deep ultraviolet to the infrared, from continuous output to picosecond pulses and from microwatts to megawatts, energy-measuring devices encompass a wide range of possibilities [1-3]. Detectors are sensitive to the spectrum of the beam and the speed of energy deposition in their conversion of energy to a useful readable or recordable quantity that can be interpreted as energy or power.
