For pulsed lasers, the instantaneous power at the top of the pulse, about energy over duration with a shape factor near 0.94 for Gaussian pulses. A 1 mJ pulse lasting 10 ns peaks near 100 kW; the same energy in 100 fs peaks at about 10 GW. Peak power drives nonlinear effects, ablation and damage, while average power, energy times repetition rate, drives heating.
Average power's only 2 watts but peak power is 20 megawatts, so treat every surface it hits like it could catch fire.
Also heard as
- peak
- Ppk
Related terms
Pulse duration
How long a laser pulse lasts, normally given as the full width at half maximum of its intensity.
Fluence
Pulse energy per unit area, usually in J/cm squared, the quantity that sets ablation and optical damage.
Rep rate
Clipped form of repetition rate: how many pulses per second a pulsed laser emits.
Damage threshold
The maximum fluence or power density an optic can take before it is permanently damaged.
Self-phase modulation
Spectral broadening of an intense pulse caused by its own intensity changing the refractive index it travels through.