Radiation flux - definition
Radiation flux - definition
Radiant flux is a physical quantity describing the total power of radiant energy emitted, transmitted or received by a specific surface per unit time. In the SI system it is expressed in watts (W), and its value refers to the total electromagnetic energy covering any range of wavelengths from radio to gamma radiation. The concept is used in physics, optical engineering, photonics, thermal engineering and lighting engineering.
Radiative flux is a generalisation of the concept of power to cases where the energy carrier is radiation rather than mass flow or electric current. In the context of electromagnetic radiation can refer to both continuous and pulsed waves. For point sources it is related to the emission of energy in all directions of space, while for directional sources it describes the intensity of radiation concentrated at a specific solid angle.
Depending on the context, radiant flux can refer to radiation emitted (e.g. by a blackbody), passing through a given surface (e.g. in electromagnetic wave transmission analysis), or absorbed by a material. In technical and industrial applications, the derivatives of this quantity - such as radiant flux density or luminance - which take into account the spatial and spectral distribution of the radiant energy, are of particular importance.
In the field of energy and photovoltaics, the solar radiant flux (so-called irradiance) is a key parameter that determines the amount of energy available for conversion into electricity. In radiometry and spectroscopy, it enables the analysis of the emission and absorption properties of different materials. In measurement systems, radiant energy-sensitive detectors calibrated against known reference sources are used to determine this quantity.
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