Thermal Conductivity, Diffusivity Probe

这是SBIR的一期项目，旨在开发一种新的探针带和相关的计算仪器，用于快速测量固体材料的热性能。所采用的组合是基于弗吉尼亚理工大学最近开发的微型薄膜热流传感器。这种新型探头将使固体材料样品的热导率和热扩散率能够简单快速地测量。在探头的末端将有一个热流传感器和两个薄膜热电偶，通过掩膜溅射工艺应用于其上。为了测量材料试样的热性能，探针和试样最初处于不同的温度，将通过机械配准装置突然放置在紧密的热接触中。由此产生的热流和试样快速变化的表面温度将被转换为瞬态电信号。这些将被测量并记录为时间的函数。本文将发展一种利用电信号计算热导率和热扩散率的方法。待开发的设备将应用于材料制造质量控制、研究实验室，并可能应用于医疗应用。

This is a SBIR Phase I project to develop a new tape of probe and associated computing instrument for quickly measuring thermal properties of solid materials. The combination to be employed is based on the miniature thin-film heat flux sensor recently developed at Virginia Tech. The new probe will enable the thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of solid materials specimens to be measured simply and rapidly. At the end of the probe will be a heat-flux sensor and two thin-film thermocouple, applied to it by a masked sputtering process. To measure the thermal properties of a material specimen, the probe and specimen, initially at different temperatures, will be placed abruptly in close thermal contact by mechanical registration device. The resulting flow of heat and the rapidly changing surface temperatures of the specimen will be converted to transient electrical signals. These will be measured an recorded as functions of time. A method for computing thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity from the electrical signals will be developed. The device to be developed will have application in materials manufacturing quality control, in research laboratories, and possibly in medical applications.