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TD002
John M. Zurbuchen
January 20, 1993
Revised June 2000
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
K Thermocouple
40 uV/C
4x10-8 Volts
-200C to 1300C
100 RTD
0.392 /C
4x10-4 ohms
-200C to 650C
10k Thermistor
438 /C
4x10-1 ohms
-80C to 150C
Other advantages of thermistors include very low excitation power, two-wire connection, ruggedness,
interchangeability, flexibility in characteristics, and a large variety of sizes.
Their major disadvantages are a rather limited temperature range, and an inherent nonlinear response.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
II Thermistor Types.
Thermistors are made in an incredible variety of sizes, styles, and lead configurations, all dependent
upon their final application. There are beads, chips, disks, wafers, flakes, rods; with parallel leads or
axial leads; epoxy coated or glass encapsulated.
For temperature measurement, two types of thermistors, beads and disks, constitute the major portion of
the market volume, with disks the dominant type. In recent years the thermistor chip has gained
popularity. Its characteristics are like those of a disk thermistor, but with a trend to smaller size.
The characteristics that distinguish bead thermistors from disks are size, interchangeability, dissipation
constant, time constant, and stability. Beads are usually very small, not interchangeable, and have a very
fast response time, but very lower power handling without self-heat. They are normally quite stable,
with drift rates on the order of 5mK per year. They can operate at higher temperatures. Disks, on the
other hand, can be made interchangeable, have higher power handling capability, have a longer time
constant, but until recently, were somewhat less stable, with drift rates about 50mK per year. These
differences arise from the differing processes used in their manufacture, and are summarized in Table 2.
Diameter/Width
Time Constant (still air)
Dissipation Constant (air)
Time Constant (water)
Dissipation Constant (oil)
Max. Operating Temperature
Typical 10 mil
Glass coated Bead
0.25 mm
0.5 sec
0.09 mW/C
10 msec
0.45 mW/C
300C
Typical
Epoxy Coated Disk
2.5 mm
--------1.0 mW/C
1.0 sec
8.0 mW/C
150C
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APPLICATION NOTE
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= x(-q/kT)
where is the infinite temperature conductivity (which includes consideration of charge density and
mobility), -q is the activation energy, k is Boltzmanns constant, and T the absolute temperature.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
For thermistors, the resistivity (and hence resistance) is of more interest; therefore, the expression
becomes
= x(q/kT)
By replacing resistivity with resistance values and combining the activation energy and Boltzmanns
constant terms, the familiar thermistor expression is obtained
R = A(B/T)
where A includes dimensional factors and infinite temperature resistance, B is the material constant
Beta, and T is the absolute temperature.
These electrical properties, the material constant Beta (or slope) and the resistivity (Ohm-cm), are
controlled by composition, sintering temperature, and oxygen partial pressure during sintering; that is,
by the manufacturing process.
The resistance (Ohm) is a function of the resistivity and the physical dimensions of the device.
R = 1/A
where R is the resistance in Ohms, is the resistivity (ohm-cm), 1 is the distance between opposite
electrodes, and A is the contact area. Although the slope and resistivity are fixed by composition and
firing temperature, the resistance can be adjusted by varying the dimensions of the device. Thus,
precision interchangeable thermistors can be manufactured.
In this manner, thermistor manufacturers provide a series of materials covering a range of R v. T
characteristics to provide the appropriate sensor for the temperature range of interest. Figure 1 shows R
v. T for a series of different thermistor compositions in the temperature range of -80C to 150C.
Although the expression R = A(B/T) gives good agreement with experiment over short temperature spans,
a better method of interpolation over larger temperature ranges is necessary for accurate temperature
measurements. Such an equation was developed by J. S. Steinhart and S. R. Hart of the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institute in 1968 (see Ref. 12).
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APPLICATION NOTE
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Figure 1. Resistance versus temperature for different thermistor compositions. Note that
temperature range for high resistance materials can extend beyond 150C.
The Steinhart & Hart equation is an empirical expression that has been determined to be one of the best
mathematical expressions for the resistance-temperature relationship of a negative temperature
coefficient thermistor. It is usually written explicit in T:
1 = a + b * (1nR) + c * (1nR)3
T
where T is the Kelvin temperature, a, b, and c are the coefficients derived from measurement, and lnR is
the natural logarithm of resistance in ohms. To find a, b, and c, the resistance of a thermistor should be
measured at three evenly spaced temperatures. These three temperatures and resistances are then used to
solve three simultaneous equations.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Knowing a, b, and c, for the thermistor allows one to use the equation in two ways. if resistance is
known and temperature is desired, use the above equation. If temperature is known and the expected
resistance is desired use the equation below.
2
1/2
-/2]1/3-[(2/4+3/27)1/2+/2]1/3
where = (a -1/T)/c and = b/c, in which a, b, and c, are the coefficients of the Steinhart and Hart
equation.
Listed below is a spreadsheet program with cell assignments which will calculate the coefficients for the
Steinhart and Hart equation.
A1: 'SPREADSHEET METHOD FOR SOLVING STEINHART & HART EQUATION.
A2:'1/T = a + b(lnR) + c(lnR)^3
A4: 'Input temperature and resistance
B5: 'Temp (C)
C5: 'Resistance
D5: 'T(K)
E5: 'ln(R)
A6: 'Low
B6: 0
C6: 7355
D6: +B6+273.15
E6: @LN(C6)
A7: 'Mid
B7: 40
C7: 1199
D7: +B7+273.15
E7: @LN(C7)
A8: 'High
B8: 70
C8: 394.5
D8: +B8+273.15
E8: @LN(C8)
A10: 'Solve three simultaneous equations to obtain coefficients a,b,c:
A12: 'ln(R1) - ln(R2)
B12: +E6 -E7
C12: 'Coefficients:
A13: 'ln(R1) - ln(R3)
B13: +E6-E8
C13: 'a=
D13: 1/D6-D15*E6^3-D14*E6
A14: '(1/T1)-(1/T2)
B14: 1/D6 - 1/D7
C14: 'b=
Measurement Specialties Dayton
2670 Indian Ripple Road
Dayton, OH 45440-3605 USA
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
D14: (B14-D15*(E6^3-E7^3))/B12
A15: '(1/T1) - (1/T3)
B15: 1/D/6-1/D8
C15: 'c=
D15: (B14-B12*B15/B13)/((E6^3-E7^3)-B12*(E6^3-E8^3)/B13)
A17: 'Solving for R, given T:
A19: 'For T (Deg C) =
B19: 25
C19: +B19+273.15
D19: '=T (K)
A21: 'R = exp{[A^2/4 + B^3/27)^(1/2) - (A/2]^(1/3)
A22: '
- [(A^2/4 + B^3/27)^(1/2) + A/2]^(1/3)}
A24: 'A =(a -1/T)/c
B24: (D13 - (1/C19))/D15
D24: 'A squared =
E24: +B24^2
A25: 'B = b/c
B25: +D14/D15
D25: 'B cubed=
E25: +B25^3
A27: 'R =
B27: @EXP((@SQRT(E24/4+E25/27)-B24/2)^(1/3)-(@SQRT(E24/4+E25/27)+B24/2) ^(1/3))
C27: 'Ohms
A28: 'dR/dT=
B28: -1*B27/(C19^2*(D14+3*D15*(@LN(B27))^2))
A29: '%dR/dt=
B29: +B28/B27*100
A31: 'Solving for Temperature given R:
A32: 'Ohms =
B32: 2252
A34: 'Temperature (C) =
B34: 1/(D13+D14*@LN(B32)+D15*(LN(B32))^3)-273.15
Note: Cells that start with an apostrophe ' are labels. Boxed cells indicate data you must enter. Other
cells are formulas. For better legibility, increase column A width to 18 characters.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
dR
dT
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
R @25
Ohms
a
b
c
d
e
2252
10k
100k
300k
1meg
Alpha
@25C
(%/C)
-4.40
-4.03
-4.50
-4.83
-5.19
Alpha
@50C
(%/C)
-3.80
-3.53
-3.96
-4.26
-4.58
Beta
0-50
(K)
3891
3574
3988
4276
4582
Resistance
Ratio
(R25 / R125)
29.26
23.51
34.82
46.02
61.96
As power is applied to a thermistor, Joule heating occurs with an accompanying change in resistance.
Since these are negative temperature coefficient devices, the resistance drops as the power increases. As
long as the self-heat power is less than the heat dissipation, the resistance is constant. When self heating
becomes appreciable, the voltage increase lags against the current increase until a point is reached when
the voltage no longer increases. This is the turnover point. Beyond this point, as the current is
increased further, the resistance drops faster than the current increase, resulting in a falling currentvoltage region with negative resistance. This is a type of thermal runaway condition.
For temperature measurement one should stay well below this "turnover" voltage. (See Fig. 2.)
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
The thermal time constant is the time required for a thermistor to reach 63.2% of the final temperature
change when subjected to a step change in temperature. Its magnitude depends on the same
environmental and thermal conditions as the dissipation constant.
These properties are device related, as they depend upon mass, heat capacity, and thermal conductivity.
A very tiny bead thermistor may have a time constant in the millisecond range, but can only handle
tenths of microwatts of power without substantial self-heat.
Figure 2. Static V-I characteristics for a 10k ohm thermistor at 25 C. A dissipation constant of 1
mW/C is assumed.
IV. C. Stability
Thermistors are not only extremely sensitive, they are also very stable. Their drift rate is surprisingly
small, normally on the order of milliKelvins per year at room temperature.
Discussion of stability, or drift, in themistors refers to the change in resistance at a given temperature
over time. It does not refer to short term variations, sometimes called noise. Unless there is a defect in
the device, thermistors are very quiet.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 3. a) Increasing thermometric shift of bare disk thermistor aged at 150C (from Ref. 7).
b) Constant thermometric shift at various measuring temperatures. Glass coated thermistors aged
at 200C (data from Ref. 8).
The major causes of calibration drift are contact degradation and changes in the bulk material. Contact
degradation usually manifests itself as a constant % increase in resistance at all measuring temperatures.
The effect is to have a larger thermometric error at the higher measuring temperatures. (See Figure 3a.)
Changes in bulk material properties are due to crystallographic changes, shifts in phase equilibrium,
grain boundary effects, and changes due to cation distribution and oxygen balance. Material changes
usually appear as a constant thermometric change. (See Figure 3b.)
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APPLICATION NOTE
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APPLICATION NOTE
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Figure 5. Stability of disk thermistor probes. Samples were at room temperature between
measurements.
Figure 5 shows the remarkable stability of ordinary disk thermistor probes. The graph represents the
average of five probes that were measured by NBS over a 13-year period. The average drift rate is
approximately 5mK/year.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 6. Median drift rates of beads and disks versus aging temperature (from Ref. 10).
The NIST (then the NBS) has carried out a long-term (2 year, 1974-1976) study of the stability of
thermistors. They obtained both bead and disk sample thermistors in four different resistance values
from each of five different manufactures. This study verified the better stability of beads, but also
showed the large variation in drift rate of disk thermistors from different suppliers. The better disk
samples had median drift rates equal to that of some bead types. Figures 6, 7a, and 7b are some
examples of the drift rates taken from that study.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 7. Plot of thermometric change with time for 30C aging. Top: Best bead type.
Bottom: Best disk type. Note magnitude of scale. (From Ref. 10.)
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 8. Long-term stability of glass coated thermistors. Top: Beads at 30C (from Ref. 10).
Bottom: Interchangeable glass coated disks at 25C (from Ref. 4).
In 1981YSI introduced very stable interchangeable glass coated disk thermistors. The drift rate was
specified at less than 5 mK/year for temperatures up to 70C, which is a stability approaching that of the
better glass coated beads. This was confirmed in a paper presented by J.A. Wise of NIST at 1992
International Temperature Symposium in Toronto. Figure 8 shows a plot from that study compared with
results to beads from the 1976 study.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
V. Tolerance, Calibration
For precision thermometry, the Beta value and the resistance must be controlled over a narrow range.
Thermistors are often specified like resistors, with a resistance tolerance of 20%, 10%, 5% of R at
25C. The Beta tolerance should be specified as well. These are normally referred to as point matched
thermistors, and are only accurate at the one point, with deviations growing rapidly on either side. (See
Fig. 9.) In interchangeable or curve matched thermistors, the R v T curve is reproducible over a given
temperature range. This means both the Beta constant and the resistance value have to be tightly
controlled. For highly precise interchangeable thermistors the Beta constant is maintained within 0.3%.
If the required accuracy and precision of the temperature measurement is on the order of 0.1C or
broader, then the use of interchangeable thermistors is a decided advantage since they are pre-calibrated.
By interchangeability, we mean that any thermistor may be replaced by any other, of the same type, and
the error in temperature measurement will be within the specified tolerance over the specified
temperature range on a nominal curve. [For example, a YSI 44031, a tenth degree device, will give
resistance values that differ by no more than 0.1C between 0C and 70C from the nominal curve.]
For some glass coated disk thermistors, the interchangeability has been tightened to 0.05C.
The effect of the temperature scale change from IPTS-68 to ITS-90 in the temperature range for which
most interchangeable thermistors are produced is not significant. At worse, it takes up about 20% of the
tolerance band at the high temperature end. (See Fig. 10.)
For temperature tolerance tighter than 0.05C or 50 mK, calibration at specific temperature points of
interest should be done in a constant temperature bath against a reference thermistor thermometer or a
SPRT. For accuracies in the mK range, and in conformance to ITS-90, one may calibrate thermistors in
fixed point cells, such as the triple point of mercury, the triple point of water, and the melting point of
gallium. This is a convenient range with which to bracket 0C. Such a thermistor probe could then be
used to track temperature variations on the order of tenths of milliKelvins in triple point of water cells,
for instance.
For the biological or medical range, calibrations may be done with TpH20, gallium, and succinonitrile
cells. This covers the range from 0C to 60C, which brackets the human body temperature nicely.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 9. Top: Effect of resistance and beta tolerance on temperature measuring tolerance (from
Ref. 1). Bottom: Tolerance of interchangeable thermistor, 0.1 from 0-70C (from YSI catalog).
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APPLICATION NOTE
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
300k
0.2C
<15 K
<2 K
200k
21 mK
<1 mK
90K
Range (ohms)
Resolution
Self-heat, Std.
Self-heat, Mod.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
200
12.4
22.9
24.8
2k
1.3
5.2
6.0
8.9
9.5
Meter Range
20k
200k
0.1
0.1
0.2
0.2
0.6
1.0
1.1
0.2
0.7
1.1
1.2
0.0
2meg
1.2
2.0
Admittedly, DMMs give read-outs in ohms, not in temperature. The temperature then must be obtained
from the R v. T tables available with interchangeable thermistors.
For more accurate determination of temperature, one can determine the resistance at three temperatures,
either experimentally or from the R v. T tables, and use Steinhart & Hart interpolation equation to obtain
temperature from a given resistance.
The major drawback of DMMs is their inability to adjust the power to the thermistor, thus offering no
control over self-heat. However, the speed at which measurements can be taken may be an offsetting
factor.
A simple voltage divider, or half-bridge, where resistance (of a value close to that of the thermistor at
temperature mid-point) is placed in series with the thermistor, is a convenient calibration set-up. The
fixed resistor is a standard resistor and the power supply is a very stable current source. Using a
precision voltmeter, one can determine the current by measuring the voltage across the standard resistor.
Then, by measuring the voltage across the thermistor and using Ohms Law, one can calculate the
resistance of the thermistor. In this set-up, the connection to the standard resistor and thermistor is 4wire. Such a set-up was used at NIST to measure drift rates in glass coated thermistors.
One of the traditional methods for very precise temperature measurements is the use of a good DC
Wheatstone bridge with adjustable input power and a sensitive null detector. In this manner, self-heat
can be controlled, and zero power resistance can be determined by operating at several power levels and
extrapolating to zero. The disadvantage is slow data acquisition.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Figure 11. Half bridge and Wheatstone bridge circuits for thermistor measurement.
With the precision and accuracy of modern DMMs approaching that of a Wheatstone bridge, the choice
of which to use depends on the relative importance of convenience versus power control.
With the advent of modern digitizing techniques, the recommendation is to perform an A/D conversion
at the earliest possible step, and use look-up tables in ROM and/or calculations to provide a temperature
output.
We have not covered linearization techniques or circuit designs. Information on the YSI 4800LC
Linearizing Circuit and Thermilinear networks are available from YSI.
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APPLICATION NOTE
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APPLICATION NOTE
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Figure 12. Interpolation errors for Steinhart & Hart equation with calibration points at 0, 50,
and 100C.
Thermistor
Resistance
7355
2252
1200
394.5
% Change in
Resistance
0.007
0.022
0.042
0.127
alpha
%DR/C
-5.15
-4.39
-4.05
-3.45
Thermometric
Error (mK)
-1
-5
-10
-37
EMFs may originate from temperature gradients at connections of thermistor leads to extension wires r
the measuring equipment if made of dissimilar metals. DC bridges normally have zero offset
capabilities. With DMMs the simplest method is to switch to DC volts mode in the lowest range and
look for small voltages. A good thermistor (or probe) should show 0. If a voltage does appear, one can
obtain correct resistance readings by reversing the connections and averaging the two resistance
readings.
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APPLICATION NOTE
TD002
Bibliography
Books
1. David C. Hill and Harry L. Tuller, Ceramic Sensors: Theory and Practice; pp. 249-347 in Ceramic
Materials for Electronics. Edited by Revla C. Buchanan. Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, 1991.
The following texts are good, but unfortunately out of print:
2. Eric D. Macklen, Thermistors, Electrochemical Publications, Ayr, Scotland, 1979.
3. Herbert B. Sasche, Semiconducting Temperature Sensors and their Applications, John Wiley & Sons, New
York, 1975.
Papers
4. J.A. Wise, Stability of Glass-encapsulated Disk-type Thermistors, presented at the International
Symposium on Temperature, Toronto, 1992.
5. Brian E. Code, Thermistor Probes for Severe Moisture Environments, Sensors, October 1986.
6. Harry L. Trietley, All About Thermistors, Parts 1, 2, and 3, Radio Electronics, January, February, and
March 1985.
7. J.M. Zurbuchen and D.A. Case, Aging Phenomena in Nickel Manganese Oxide Thermistors; pp. 889-896 in
Temperature, Its Measurement and Control in Science and Industry, Vol. 5. Edited by J.F. Schooley.
American Institute of Physics, New York, 1982.
8. T.H. LaMers, J.M. Zurbuchen, and H. Trolander, Enhanced Stability in Precision Interchangeable
Thermistors; pp. 865-873 in Temperature, Its Measurement and Control in Science and Industry, Vol. 5.
Edited by J.F. Schooley. American Institute of Physics, New York, 1982.
9. Meyer Sapoff, Thermistors for Resistance Thermometry, Measurements and Control, Vol. 14, Nos. 2, 3, 4,
5, and 6, 1980.
10. S.D. Wood, B.W. Mangum, J.J. Filliben, and S.B. Tillet, An Investigation of the Stability of Thermistors,
Journal of Research of the National Bureau of Standards, Vol. 83, No. 3, 247-263, 1978.
11. Ray Haruff and Charles Kimball, Temperature Compensation Using Thermistor Networks, Analytical
Chemistry, Vol. 42, No. 7, 73A-75A, 1970.
12. J.S. Steinhart and S.R. Hart, Calibration Curves for Thermistors, Deep Sea Research, Vol. 15, 497-503,
1968.
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