Thermal diffusivity by modified ac calorimetry using a modulated laser beam energy source

Modified ac calorimetry, a variation of the Angstrom method, has been shown to be a precise tool for measuring the in plane thermal diffusivity of thin films (thickness less than 300 mu m) of a wide variety of materials and layered composites. The property is determined from an analysis of the decay curve of the ac temperature waves generated by irradiation of a specimen using uniform chopped light (at frequencies from 1 to 20 Hz) from a halogen lamp source. To address certain limiting factors, especially to improve the signal-to-noise ratio and to eliminate heat losses, an improved form of measurement instrument has been developed. It is based on the use of a modulated laser beam heating to provide a higher intensity energy source plus a special optical system to ensure that one-dimensional ac temperature wave propagation is obtained. Measurements can now be made using frequencies in the range of 0.01 to 10 Hz, i.e., 10 times lower than in the traditional method. The performance of the improved measurement instrument will be illustrated by results on various materials of known thermal properties such as nickel and stainless steel, proposed reference materials such as a glassy carbon and alumina, plus a comparison of results obtained on CVD diamond films used in an international round-robin series with those obtained by the traditional technique.