Infrared Intensity

According to IUPAC [1], the molar absorption coefficient is defined as:

I 0 (~ ) A(~ )
1
~
( ) =
log10 ~ =
Cd
Cd
I ( )
Here ~ is the wavenumber (cm-1), C is the concentration (mol/L), d is the optical path
length (cm), I0 and I are the intensities of the incident and transmitted radiation,
respectively, and A = log10(I0/I) is the absorbance (dimensionless). The common unit of is
L mol-1 cm-1, corresponding to the coherent SI unit 0.1 m2 mol-1:
L
1000 cm3
=
= 1000 cm 2 mol1 = 0.1 m 2 mol1
mol cm
mol cm
The integrated absorption coefficient is defined as
1
A = (~ )d~ =
A(~ )d~

Cd

The integral is over the entire absorption band and is a measure of the true intensity of the
transition. The unit of A is
L
1000 cm3
cm 1 =
cm 1 = 1000 cm mol1 = 10 m mol1
mol cm
mol cm
However, in IR spectroscopy, the most frequently used intensity unit is
1000 m mol-1 = km mol-1.

[1] International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), Glossary of terms used in
Photochemistry, 3rd Edition, July 2004.
See also the following paper: