Development of a Thermal Relaxation Calorimeter with Pt Thin Thermal Sensor

We have constructed an apparatus to measure heat capacity of small single crystals by thermal relaxation calorimetry technique. We have used a Pt thin film thermometer with 100 Ω at room temperature as a sensor and small strain gauge with 1000 Ω as a heater. The calorimetry cell is mounted on a cryostat and is surrounded by two radiation shields of which temperature can be controlled independently. The application as a continuous heating adiabatic calorimeter seems to be possible using the same system.

(by T. Moriura & Y. Nakazawa)

Fig. 1. Schematic drawing of the (a) whole probe, (b) expanded drawing around the sample, and (c) photo of the probe.

Fig. 2. Temperature dependence of resistance of Pt thin chip thermometer. The inset is a photo of the thermometer.