Irradiance and electric field strength

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SUMMARY

This discussion addresses the conversion of electric field strength from volts per meter (V/m) to irradiance in watts per square centimeter (W/cm²) for quantum mechanics simulations. The solution involves calculating the integral of the electric field strength squared, multiplied by the permittivity of vacuum, and normalized by the duration of the pulse. The final step requires dividing the power by the area perpendicular to the pulse direction to obtain the irradiance in W/m², which can then be converted to W/cm² as needed.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of electric field strength in V/m
  • Familiarity with quantum mechanics wavefunction propagation
  • Knowledge of the permittivity of vacuum (ε₀)
  • Basic calculus for solving integrals
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the relationship between electric field strength and irradiance conversion
  • Learn about the integral calculus involved in electromagnetic field calculations
  • Explore quantum mechanics simulation tools and their requirements
  • Investigate the role of permittivity in electromagnetic theory
USEFUL FOR

Physicists, quantum mechanics researchers, and anyone involved in simulations of electromagnetic fields in quantum systems will benefit from this discussion.

nadlerchen
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Dear physicists,
I am desperate. I am using a QM code to propagate a wavefunction of a system that experienced an electric field pulse. However, in literature all values for the electric field strength are given in V/m but the program asks for W/cm^2! I am kind of very confused here and did not find any answer that might relief me from confusion... Does anyone know how this can be done?
 
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Well, finally with the help of my flatmate I figured it out. I post it just in case anybody else like me has this problem...
One has to solve the integral

[tex]\frac{1}{\Delta T} \int \frac{1}{2} \epsilon_{0} |E|^{2} d^{3}r[/tex]

[tex]\Delta T[/tex] is the duration time of the pulse, E the electric field strength in V/m and [tex]\epsilon_{0}[/tex] is the permittivity of vacuum. r is the length of the simulation box where the molecule is located in. This gives me the power of the field in W. Finally, divide this by the area of the side perpendicular to the axis along which the pulse enters the simulation box and W/m^2 results.
 

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