Measuring laser output without a LPM

[game-genie]

I copied this from DX:

How do you measure laser power without a laser power meter?
First off, you should use a solar cell with a matte dark brown finish, ***NOT*** the kind that has a shiny, "fractured" blue appearance to it.

Connect the solar cell directly to the DMM, set the DMM to a low milliamp scale, irradiate it with the laser while slowly waving the laser beam on the face of the cell, and observe the DMM's display.
Note the highest reading you see, and apply the following mathematical formula to it:
Current in amps as shown on the DMM multiplied by 1239.7 divided by 532 divided by 0.97. The result should be your laser power in milliwatts.

The "532" in this formula should be substituted with the laser's wavelength in nanometers; this will allow you to measure laser power at any visible wavelength.

This method isn't "laboratory" accurate, but it will get you in the ballpark: +-5% or so anyway.

My simple question is:
Does this work?

Regards
game-genie

 

[potatorage]

I don't think so, it's better off to look at the simple diy lpm which will give better results. Solar cells aren't good for stuff like this, they may degrade due to the high power, I don't really know

 

[genocidex]

that person did day ball park but seems a bit touchy .... worth a try tho i think ill try it the next time i find a few small solar cells lol