Memorial University of Newfoundland Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography Physics 2053 Laboratory

Thermal Radiation: Stefans Law

Introduction
If an object is at temperature T , the energy radiated from its surface depends on the fourth power of the absolute temperature, i.e., P T4 This is known as Stefans law, and is usually written as P = AeT 4 (1)

where P is the power radiated by the object, A is the surface area of the object, and e is called the emissivity . The value of e depends on the properties of the surface. is called the Stefan-Boltzmann constant and can be expressed in terms of fundamental constants, = 2 5 k 4 = 5.669 108 W/m2 .K4 2 3 15c h

We will investigate Stefans law using a tungsten lament which radiates energy due to the electrical energy supplied to it.

Method
1. Connect the terminals of the lamp to the variable power supply. Increase the voltage in suitable small steps from 0 V up to 12 V, recording the current each time. Do not allow the lament voltage to exceed 13 V. The lamp will get very bright and should be covered with a piece of card to avoid damage to your eyes (and your neighbours !)

2. Since the power radiated by the lament depends on the electrical power supplied (P IV ) and its temperature depends on resistance (T V /I ), plotting a graph of 1

power versus resistance (or log(power) versus log(resistance)) will allow you to verify the fourth power law. 3. Plot your data on a suitable scale to verify the fourth power law predicted by Eq (1). You will probably notice that the fourth power law is not obeyed at low currents. This is because the lament loses most of its heat by conduction and convection at lower temperatures, but at higher power heat loss by radiation dominates.

Determination of Temperature
For small changes in temperature, the resistance of the lament varies with temperature according to R = Rref {1 + (T Tref )} (2) where Tref is a reference temperature (usually room temperature) and Rref is the resistance of the lament at Tref . is the temperature coecient of resistivity for the lament ( = 4.5 103 K1 for tungsten). Thus for any measured resistance, R, the temperature of the lament is given by R Rref + Tref (3) T = Rref Replot your power versus temperature data with temperature plotted along the x-axis. What is the maximum temperature reached by the lament?

Inverse Square Law

The inverse-square law is very common in physics and states that the strength of a physical quantity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source of that physical quantity. Typical examples of the inverse square law can be found in the study of light, gravitation and acoustics. A radiation sensor measures the relative intensity of the incident thermal radiation. It displays the measured intensity as a voltage when connected to a voltmeter. If you consider the lamp to be the source of radiation, then the measured intensity will decrease as you move the sensor away from it. A shutter is provided by a spring clip which is opened and closed by sliding the shutter ring forward and back. The shutter should be closed when you are not actively taking measurements. This helps reduce temperature shifts in the thermopile reference junction which can cause the sensor response to shift. The two posts extending from the front end

of the sensor protect the thermopile and also provide a reference for positioning the sensor a repeatable distance from the lamp. 1. Place the lamp at one end of a meter stick and position the radiation sensor so that it is at the same height as the lament. You can assume that when the sensor is just touching the bulb, the lament-sensor distance is 2 cm. 2. With the lamp turned OFF determine the ambient level of thermal radiation. You will need to subtract this value from your measurements with the lamp on, in order to determine the contribution from the lamp alone. 3. Turn on the power supply and set the voltage to 12 V. [Do not let the voltage to the lamp exceed 13 V]. The bulb will be very bright and will need to be covered. 4. Record the sensor output voltage when the sensor is closest to the bulb and continue to measure the sensor voltage as a function of distance as the sensor and bulb are moved apart. Take as many readings as you can and plot a suitable graph to demonstrate the inverse square relationship between radiation intensity and distance from the source.