The tesla (symbolized T) is the standard unit of magnetic flux density. It is equivalent to one weber per meter squared (1 Wb · m -2 ). Reduced to base units in the International System of Units ( SI ), 1 T represents one kilogram per second squared per ampere (kg · s -2 · A -1 ). The tesla was named for Nikola Tesla , the Serbian-American scientist who contributed greatly toward the development of modern-day electrical power systems.
In practice, the tesla is a large unit, and is used primarily in industrial electromagnetics. When dealing with practical magnets of the sort encountered in consumer products, a smaller unit of flux density called the gauss (symbolized G) is often used. There are ten thousand gauss in one tesla (1 T = 10 4 G).
Also see magnetic field , gauss , and International System of Units .
24 Mar 2011