High-Resolution AC Calorimeter for Measuring the Heat Capacity of Small Amounts of Liquid Samples

Abstract
A high-resolution AC microcalorimeter has been developed to measure the heat capacity of liquid samples. A very stable AC heat flux is supplied to a sample by applying an AC electric current to a tubelike sample cell made of metal. The fluctuation of the AC temperature of the cell caused by heat leakage from the cell to the surroundings is corrected using the phase of the AC temperature together with its amplitude. Consequently, heat capacity can be measured with a precision of ±0.01%.