Temporal intensities order largest to smallest according to the provided ordering?

• A. Itp, Ita, Ipa, Imax
• B. Imax, Itp, Ipa, Ita
• C. Itp, Imax, Ita, Ipa
• D. Itp, Imax, Ipa, Ita

Answer: (D)

Temporal intensities differ by how they average the beam over time. The largest value is the peak instantaneous intensity, because it captures the moment of greatest energy delivery in the pulse. The next value reflects the highest average reached over the on-time, smoothing just enough to damp the single-shot peak but still keeping a higher level than any average that includes off-time. Then comes the pulse-averaged intensity, which averages over the duration the pulse is on, so it’s smaller than the on-time maximum. Finally, the temporal-average intensity includes the times when the beam is off, pulling the average down further. Put together, the order from largest to smallest is Itp, Imax, Ipa, Ita.