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Power

Just how powerful is 10 milliwatts?

Tiny devices

10 mW

Scale

ENERGY EACH SECOND

10 milliwatts

The quantity is exact as entered.

10 mWPower
0
Single-mode laser pointer optical output

Single-mode laser pointer optical output is the continuous visible light power emitted by a standard handheld laser pointer operating in a single spatial mode.

5 mWRated continuous optical output
0
Power is energy per unit time: one watt is one joule per second.

A little perspective

10 milliwatts is about 2 times the optical output of a single-mode laser pointer.

Measurements, assumptions & sources +

10 milliwatts

Power: 10 mW; definition.

The quantity is exact as entered. Comparisons use the clearly stated specimen, model or nominal measurement.

NIST — SI conversion factors

Single-mode laser pointer optical output

Rated continuous optical output: 5 mW; defined upper reference; range 1 mW–5 mW.

A defined 5 mW visible laser pointer output. The 0.3 J comparison is power multiplied by 60 seconds; beam class, wavelength and actual output matter.

US FDA — Laser products and instruments

The marked rated continuous optical output is calibrated. Unmeasured illustration details are representative.

Measurement details

Why these numbers?

Compare 10 milliwatts with the optical output of a single-mode laser pointer. The notes below explain how each value was chosen.

10 milliwatts

10 mW

Power · definition

The quantity is exact as entered. Comparisons use the clearly stated specimen, model or nominal measurement.

Single-mode laser pointer optical output

5 mW

Rated continuous optical output · defined upper reference · range 1 mW–5 mW

A defined 5 mW visible laser pointer output. The 0.3 J comparison is power multiplied by 60 seconds; beam class, wavelength and actual output matter.

Comparing
Power ↔ Rated continuous optical output
Relative size
10 milliwatts is about 2 times the optical output of a single-mode laser pointer. 10 milliwatts is approximately 100% greater than the optical output of a single-mode laser pointer.

How to read the visual

The diagram uses the recorded measurements. Details outside the marked spans do not set the scale.

  • We use 5 mW for the optical output of a single-mode laser pointer; the recorded range is 1 mW–5 mW.
  • The optical output of a single-mode laser pointer: This is an illustrative comparison value, not a claim that every example is the same.

Power is the rate of energy transfer or use, not the total energy.

0.01 Wwatts
1.341 × 10⁻⁵ hpmechanical horsepower

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