Gauss (unit)
cgs unit of magnetic flux density (0.1 millitesla)
The gauss (symbol: G, sometimes Gs) is a unit of measurement of magnetic flux density, B (also known as magnetic induction or magnetic field). The unit is part of the Gaussian system of units, which inherited it from the older centimetre–gram–second electromagnetic units (CGS-EMU) system. It was named after the German mathematician and physicist Carl Friedrich Gauss in 1936. One gauss is defined as one maxwell per square centimetre.
As the centimetre–gram–second system of units (cgs system) has been superseded by the International System of Units (SI), the use of the gauss has been deprecated by the standards bodies, but is still regularly used in various subfields of science, and preferred in astrophysics. The SI unit for magnetic flux density is the tesla (symbol T), which corresponds to 10,000gauss.
Name, symbol, and metric prefixes
Although not a component of the International System of Units, the usage of the gauss generally follows the rules for SI units. Since the name is derived from a person's name, its symbol is the uppercase letter "G". When the unit is spelled out, it is written in lowercase ("gauss"), unless it begins a sentence. The gauss may be combined with metric prefixes, such as in milligauss, mG (or mGs), or kilogauss, kG (or kGs).
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This entry incorporates text from “Gauss (unit)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.