Table of Units and Unit Conversions

The fundamental unit system is MKS, although cm are often used in this course. The
fundamental MKS units are:
• m = meters
• s = seconds
• kg = kilograms
• C = Coulombs
• K = degrees Kelvin (Temperature)
• Amount of “stuff” = mole = NAV of stuff (unitless)

Although not officially an MKS unit, Volts (V) are often used. Volts are defined in terms
of the potential to move charge. One volt appears across a resistance of one ohm
when a current of one ampere flows through that resistance. Hence volts are defined in
terms of current and resistance. Potential (measured in volts) is how much energy is
required to move charge from one point in space to another.

The column listing MKS units will also use other units at times such as Joules or
Newtons when they are common and help to clarify meaning.

Bold values represent vectors or tensors

Some Useful Rules for Working with Units

1) The units on both sides of “=” must be the same.

2) In any expression ef ( x ) , f(x) must be unitless.
3) Any two expressions that are added (+) or subtracted (-) must have the same
units.
∂A
4) Taking the differential does not change the units. For example has the same
∂t
A
units as .
t
desired
5) To convert from one set of units to another multiply by = 1 . For example
current
⎛ [1m ] ⎞
2
2 2
to convert from cm to m multiply by ⎜⎜ ⎟⎟ since 1 m = 100 cm.
⎝ [100cm ] ⎠
 Units used in Spectroscopy

Symbol Name Units/Value MKS units

amu Atomic mass unit 1.66054×10-27 kg
c Velocity of light 2.9973×108 ms-1
D Debye [unit of dipole 3.336×10-30 Cm
moment]
e Electron charge 1.6022×10-19 C
eV Electron volt [unit of energy] 1 eV = 1.602×10-19 J
1 eV = 8062.4 cm-1
E, U Energy J = Nm kgm2s-2, CV
E Electric field Vm-1
h Planck’s constant 6.626×10-34 Js
I Intensity Wm-2 Js-1m-2
J Joule [unit of energy] Nm = kgm2s-2 = CV
k Wavevector k = 2πλ−1 = ωc-1 m-1
kB Boltzmann’s Const. kB = 1.3807×10-23 JK-1
me Electron mass me = 9.1095×10-31 kg
mp Proton mass mp = 1.6726×10-27 kg
NAV Avogadro’s Number NAV = 3.022×1023 Unitless
µ Dipole moment Cm
λ Wavelength m-1
ν, f Frequency s-1 = Hz
 Spectroscopic Unit Conversions

Different disciplines of science and engineering often use different units to represent
photon energy or frequency. Chemists use cm-1, engineers like Hz (s-1), and physicists
use nm (10-9 m)or Ǻ (10-10 m) for wavelength and eV for energy. Since nanotechnology
is an interdisciplinary science, you will often be called on to convert from one set of units
to another.

Three constants need to be memorized or written down in order to be able to do these

conversions:
c = 3×108 ms-1, the speed of light
h = 6.62×10-34 Js, Planck’s constant
e = 1.6×10-19 C, the charge on an electron

The equations below show the relationship between frequency, f or ν; wavelength, λ;

and photon energy, E:
c = fλ
E = hf

Two more facts will be helpful:

To convert between an energy in Joules (J) and electron volts (eV) the value in electron
volts is multiplied by the electron charge, e: X(J) = e × X(eV)
The unit of cm-1 commonly used by chemists is the inverse of the wavelength, λ,
expressed in cm- λ-1

Combining these simple rules allows you to convert between any commonly used units.
Some examples are shown below:

Example 1: Convert from 500 nm to Hz

o Step 1, unit conversion from nm to m: 500 nm × 1 m / 109 nm = 500×10-9 m
o Step 2: convert from wavelength to frequency: f = c/λ: 3×108 ms-1 / 500×10-9 m = 6×1014 Hz

Example 2: Convert from 0.45 eV to cm-1

o Step 1, energy unit conversion: 0.45 eV × e = 7.2×10-20 J
o Step 2, convert from energy to frequency: E/h = f → 7.2×10-20 J / 6.62×10-34 Js = 1.09×1014 Hz
o Step 3, convert from frequency to wavelength: λ = c/f → 3×108 ms-1 / 1.09×1014 Hz = 2.76×10-6 m
o Step 4, unit conversion from m to cm: 2.76×10-6 m × 100 cm/1 m = 2.67×10-4 cm
o Step 5, take inverse of wavelength to get cm-1: (2.67×10-4 cm)-1 = 3625 cm-1

As you become more proficient at converting between units you can eliminate many of
the intermediate steps shown in these examples.