A watt is a unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m²⋅s⁻³. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. In terms of electromagnetism, one watt is the rate at which electrical work is performed when a current of one ampere (A) flows across an electrical potential difference of one volt (V) . Two additional unit conversions for watt can be found using the above equation and Ohms law. The watt is named after James Watt, an 18th-century Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved the Newcomen engine with his own steam engine in 1776.
Other related terms include:
- Kilowatt (kW): 1,000 watts.
- Megawatt (MW): 1,000,000 watts.
- Milliwatt (mW): 0.001 watts.
- Microwatt (uW): 0.000001 watts.
- Watt-hour (Wh): a unit of energy, which is the amount of energy an item consumes over a given timeframe. It is generally measured in kilowatt-hours.
