A New Method for the Quantification and Correction of Thermal Effects on the Realization of Fixed Points

摘要

The temperature and flatness (shape) of a fixed-point plateau depend on both the amount and nature of specific impurities and on thermal effects that are influenced by the fixed-point cell design and furnace properties. A better understanding and experimental proof of the influence of specific impurities on fixed-point realizations require the separation of impurity influences from thermal effects. In this paper the influence of heat exchange between the thermometer and furnace is quantified via a method based on changing the furnace temperature during the fixed-point measurement. It will be shown that the corresponding correction of this thermal effect has a dominant influence on the plateau shape compared to the influence of impurities. This leads to an explanation for why the maximum of an induced freeze is the most reproducible temperature. A secondary outcome is an explanation of why natural freezes have less flat plateaux compared to induced freezes, resulting in fixed-point temperatures that are too low. Furthermore, the suggested procedure is the basis of the direct and quantitative comparison of fixed-point cells and the detection of weak points within a specific design. It allows optimization of fixed-point cells and furnaces, and helps to deepen the common understanding of the phase transition in fixed-point cells.