Temperature is an indication of the measure of how hot or cold a particular substance is. Temperature is a physical property of a substance. It can be measured using a thermometer. A conventional thermometer contains mercury in a thin vial and is marked with a scale which helps a person read the temperature of a given object. When the bulb comes in contact with the substance the mercury absorbs the heat and starts rising. It stabilizes at a particular temperature which is in homeostasis with the temperature of the substance.
It is commonly measured in the Celsius scale, the Fahrenheit scale and the Kelvin scale.
The direct way of measuring temperature is by feeling the specific substance. Basically, there are two equivalent concepts which have developed in the past to measure temperature. One is the thermodynamic description and the other is the macroscopic measurement. The macroscopic measurement is based on statistical physics. The thermodynamic definition and explanation was elaborated by Lord Kelvin. Kelvin scale is used to measure the temperature and is named after him. Statistical physics gives a better explanation of thermodynamics and temperature of a substance.
An object which feels hotter compared to some different object is said to have higher temperature. However, temperature is not a direct measurement of heat. Scientifically it is the measurement of the average kinetic energy of the particles contained in a substance. Each substance is made of particles and the speed at which these particles move determines the kinetic energy.
Kelvin and the Celsius scales
The international agreement recognizes the Kelvin and the Celsius scales to measure temperature. The Kelvin scale is symbolized by âKâ and temperature is symbolized by âTâ. The Kelvin and the Celsius measures of temperature can be expressed vise-versa by using stipulated formulas. Thus you can express Kevin measure in Celsius and Celsius measure in Kelvin. The earliest scale to measure temperature was the Fahrenheit in the 1600 century. Scientists have found the relationship between the three scales of measuring temperature.
There are various temperature measuring sensors and devices available. There are the thermocouple temperature measurement sensors, resistance temperature devices, infrared temperature measurement devices, bimetallic temperature measurement devices, fluid expansion and change of state temperature measurement devices. Each one of these devices is used for different purposes of measuring temperature.
