41B: THERMAL RADIATION

Aims
(1) (2) Compare the thermal absorption and emission properties of different surfaces; Gain an understanding of how our perceptions of "bright" and "dark" arise.

Introduction
In this experiment, you will explore the nature and properties of thermal radiation. By "thermal radiation" here, we mean electromagnetic radiation which lies in the infrared region of the spectrum, with wavelengths from about 0.1m to 40m. Thermal radiation shares many properties with other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as visible light (wavelengths between about 400nm and 750nm), microwaves (centimetre-scale wavelengths), radio waves (metre-scale wavelengths), as well and ultraviolet light, X-rays and gamma radiation (all of which have much shorter wavelengths). Our eyes are not sensitive to thermal/infrared radiation: sort of like a radio receiver, our vision is "tuned" to the visible part of the spectrum, and cannot detect or interpret other forms of electromagnetic radiation. At the conclusion of the experiment, though, you should be able to think about and describe what we would see if our eyes were sensitive to thermal radiation - or, for that matter, to any other wavelength range! Thermal radiation, and thermal radiation detectors, are of great interest in military-related fields. You have probably experienced for yourself how thermal imaging equipment allows you to "see in the dark", for example. Other applications include the heat-seeking sensors in guided munitions such as air-to-air missiles. Thermal imagers have been combined with radar in a system called RAPTOR (RAdar Plus Thermal Observation and Recognition) to allow for the benefits of each detecting device to be combined.

Procedure
You are provided with an Infrared Photometer (Pasco model TD-8549), which provides a calibrated output in millivolts proportional to the intensity of the detected thermal/infrared radiation. The Photometer has three amplifier ranges, each of which allows you to convert the voltage output into a measure of radiation intensity (in mW/cm2). The conversion factor for each amplifier range is marked on the Photometer.  If your Photometer is set to Scale B, and you record an output of 15mV, what radiation intensity does this indicate? Give your answer both in mW/ cm2, and in Wm-2. A flat spring shutter on the Photometer opens the aperture (which receives radiation from about 80) and turns on the amplifier power. Measurements should be made over a time period of about five seconds, then the shutter should be closed (by releasing the shutter) and the Photometer body should be shielded from direct radiation. A reflective insulating foam sheet is provided for the purpose of shielding.

41B1

The calibration of the Photometer can be checked with a black reference sheet. If both the sheet and the Photometer are at the same temperature as the background environment (i.e., they are both at the ambient temperature), the Photometer output can be adjusted to read zero when positioned close to the sheet. Use the Photometer to examine the relative magnitudes of the radiation emitted from objects in the local environment. Make sure that you note and record enough data to enable you to answer the following questions. You are expected to back up your answers with suitable (measured) evidence!  Do different objects, all at about the same temperature, emit the same amount of thermal radiation?  Do some materials block (or absorb) thermal radiation?  Do some materials transmit thermal radiation (or at least, don't absorb much)?  Is the heat loss from a person evenly distributed over the body, or do different parts of the body lose heat at different rates?  Checkpoint 1: ask a demonstrator to review your work To try to quantify this further, you can make measurements using a calibrated, standard source of thermal radiation: a Thermal Radiation (or Leslie's) Cube. This device has a central bulb to provide heating of the four surfaces; the amount of heating (and hence the temperature of the surfaces) can be adjusted using the potentiometer knob on the front of the Cube. Be careful - the Cube can get VERY HOT, and should not be handled unless it is cool. Four Cubes are available in the laboratory, and each one has been pre-set to a particular temperature. Do NOT change the settings on the Cubes!

WARNING: the Cubes are HOT. Avoid contacting the Cubes with skin, clothes, paper, etc.!!!!

You will be exploring how the intensity of the thermal radiation emitted from the four surfaces of the Cube vary with temperature. Before making a measurement, check that the Cube you are about to use is at thermal equilibrium: i.e., its temperature is not changing. A thermistor is connected to one corner of the Cube, and its resistance can be measured with an ohmmeter. The ohmmeter reading can be converted to temperature of the Cube via the Conversion Table provided. Start with one Cube (it doesnt matter which one), record the resistance indicated by the ohmmeter and convert to get the Cube temperature. Then, record measurements with the Photometer from each of the four sides of the Cube (the support posts on the front of the Photometer can be used as guides, to make your measurements at the same distance from each side). Check the calibration of the Photometer against the black reference sheet before and after each set of readings on a single Cube. Remember: always shield the Photometer from the hot Cube, except when making measurements (and then only expose the sensor and the body of the Photometer for a few seconds). This prevents heating of the Photometer body itself.

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 Why is it important that the Photometer casing not heat up significantly as you take your measurements? In your table of data, include a column indicating the relative "efficiencies" of each side, relative to the side which emits the greatest thermal radiation intensity.  Why is it important to make measurements at the same distance from each side of the Cube? Repeat your measurements of thermal radiation from the four sides of each of the other three Cubes, so that you have four sets of data at different Cube temperatures: a total of 16 measurements.  Is the order of the surfaces, in terms of their relative efficiencies, dependent on temperature? Summarise your results by calculating the average percentage efficiency of each side, with its uncertainty.  If you could actually, physically see radiation from a 100C source that was illuminating the Cube, how would the four surfaces appear to you in terms of their brightness? How does this compare with how they appear to you (i.e. their relative brightness) in the visible part of the spectrum?  Does the colour of an object tell us whether or not the object is a good absorber of radiation outside the visible spectrum? Explain.

Discussion and Conclusion

Complete your experimental write up with a summary discussion and conclusion, talking about what you have learned today! In your discussion, address the following question: Light (or shiny) and dark objects absorb radiation at different rates. Why don't they eventually become equally hot when exposed to the summer sun?  Checkpoint 2: ask a demonstrator to finish marking your experiment!

Extension work (optional, about an hour, +1 Checkpoint)

Use the Radiation Sensor or Photometer to see if glass acts the same way for solar radiation or "bare bulb" radiation (high temperature source, short wavelength infrared radiation) as for "body heat" or the Leslie's Cube (lower-temperature, longer wavelength infrared radiation). Make measurements at the same distance from the source, once "directly" and once with glass or plastic in the way (you probably want no more than about 5cm between source and detector). Which wavelengths pass through glass? Which wavelengths pass through plastic?

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