CHAPTER9.PHOTOMETRYANDRADIOMETRY.docVIP

CHAPTER 9. PHOTOMETRY AND RADIOMETRY Photometry is the study of the measurement of light in terms of the visual response it produces. Photometric measurement involves the visual response of the observer. 9.1. Visual Sensitivity The eye is not equally sensitive to the different colors of light in the visible spectrum. The visual sensitivity varies with wavelength. The sensitivity curve, sometimes referred to as the luminosity curve of an equal energy spectrum, give the relative brightness, as assessed by the average eye, of the different colors of the spectrum when the incident energies at each wavelength have been reduced to the same mechanical value. For the average light adapted eye at moderate intensities (photopic vision) the maximum visual effect is obtained with light of wavelength 555nm (yellow-green). 9.2. Solid Angle (9.1) The total solid angle surround a point is 4( steradians. Example: Calculate the solid angle subtended at the center of a sphere, radius 2 m, by an area of 2.5 m2 on the surface of the sphere. (Ans: 0.625 sr.) 9.3. Standard Source and Candela A standard must give a constant luminous output for an indefinite period of time. This restriction excludes all gas lamps, electric filament lamps, and discharge tubes from being used for standardization. The present primary standard source of light is based on the concept of a black body radiator. A black body is a device which absorbs all the radiation incident on it at all temperatures. When at a constant temperature a black body will be radiating the same energy that it receives, the total quantity depending on its temperature. Thus a black body is also a perfect emitter of radiation, and will emit more energy than any other body at the same temperature. The radiation from a black body is independent of the nature and material of the body. In basic terms, a small opening in a hollow vessel with a blackened interior will absorb all