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Chemistry
Absorption coefficient units
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[QUOTE="roam, post: 6070579, member: 120460"] Why is the absorption coefficient (##\alpha##) of water is always given using the units ##\text{length}^{-1}##, while for other materials it is often given by ##\text{length}^{2}.\text{mass}^{-1}##? For instance, [URL='https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0034425708000813']this paper[/URL] uses ##cm^{-1}## for water and yet ##cm^2 / \mu g## for other substances (such as chlorophyll, cellulose and lignin). I have seen the same in other literature. For a given wavelength, I am trying to calculate the [I]extinction length[/I] ##L=4.6/\alpha## (the thickness of material required to absorb 99% of incident light). For water this calculation is straightforward. For instance, at a wavelength of 10 micron, the absorption coefficient of water is ##\alpha \approx 1000\ cm^{-1}##, corresponding to ##L \approx 40 \ \mu m##. But how do we handle this calculation when the absorption coefficient of the material is instead given by ##cm^2 / \mu g##? :confused: Any explanation is greatly appreciated. [/QUOTE]
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Absorption coefficient units
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