Thermal diffusivity of rods, tubes, and spheres by the flash method

Abstract

The flash method is the most used technique to measure the thermal diffusivity of solid samples. It consists of heating the front face of an opaque slab by a short light pulse and detecting the temperature evolution at its rear surface, from which the thermal diffusivity is obtained. In this paper, we extend the classical flash method to be used with rods, tubes, and spheres. First, the temperature evolution of the back surface of solid cylinders, hollow cylinders, and spheres is calculated. Then, experimental measurements of the thermal diffusivity on a set of stainless steel samples confirm the validity of the method. © 2006 American Institute of Physics.