MOHAMED JABIR

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
MAJLIS ARTS AND SCIENCE COLLEGE, PUARAMANNUR
 A sensor is a device that detects and responds to some type of input
from the physical environment.
 The input can be light, heat, motion, moisture, pressure or any
number of other environmental phenomena.
 The output is generally a signal that is converted to a human-
readable display at the sensor location or transmitted electronically
over a network for reading or further processing.
 One common approach is to classify them as either active or passive.
 An active sensor is one that requires an external power source to be able
to respond to environmental input and generate output.
 For example, sensors used in weather satellites often require some source
of energy to provide meteorological data about the Earth's atmosphere.
 A passive sensor, on the other hand, doesn't require an external power
source to detect environmental input.
 It relies on the environment itself for its power, using sources such as light
or thermal energy.
 A good example is the mercury-based glass thermometer.
 The mercury expands and contracts in response to fluctuating
temperatures, causing the level to be higher or lower in the glass tube.
 Sensor that is used to measure the temperature of a system/space.
 Thermal sensors are mainly developed to use in an extensive range
of applications which ranges from industrial process monitoring to
environmental control.
 These sensors are capable of measuring different thermal signals like
temperature, acceleration, angular velocity & flow.
 The most frequently used thermal sensors are thermocouples which
are used in automotive, consumer, and industrial applications.
 Thermocouples
 Thermocouples are nonlinear sensors where their temperature, as
well as sensitivity ranges, differ by the types of metals bound
together. The thermocouple accuracy is extremely low; however, the
operation they provide is a wide range that ranges from -200℃ – 1750
℃.
 Non linear sensors
 This nonlinearity of the sensing element causes low accuracy during
measurement.
 Linearity is a desired property, because the sensitivity remains
constant throughout the range since calibration can be done with
fewer points.
 Thermocouples are the most frequently used thermal sensors in
various applications.
 This thermal sensor working principle is the Seebeck effect principle
which states that the difference in temperature between two
different metal wires generates a voltage difference.
 So this difference is proportional to the change in temperature.
 In resistance temperature detectors or RTDs, the change within the
resistance is mainly used for detecting temperature.
 These thermal sensors need materials that have a well-defined
resistance-temperature relationship.
 For RTDs, the best material is Platinum due to its relationship
between variation in temperature and change in resistance.
 Platinum material RTDs are very accurate, stable & have
repeatability within measurement, including an operation range from
-270℃ to 850℃.
 In these sensors, other materials are also used like copper, and nickel
but the accuracy is less by these metals.
 Thermistors use resistance in the measurement of temperature
similar to resistance temperature detectors.
 The materials used by these thermal sensors are ceramic or polymer
in place of copper & platinum so these sensors are available at less
cost however they are less accurate as compared to RTDs.
 Thermometers play a key role in measuring the temperature of any
liquids or solids.
 In these types of thermal sensors, the measurements of temperature
are proportional to the change in the volume of the temperature
detecting element filled in the thermometer.
 The thermometer’s accuracy mainly depends on the device size & the
liquid utilized as the temperature detecting element.
 These types of thermal sensors are available as temperature sensor
ICs which detect the change in temperature from the variation within
the output quantities like voltage, resistance, current, etc.
 These integrated circuits are extremely accurate & linear from the
range of temperatures like 55℃ – 155℃.
 Thermal sensors are extremely simple to utilize
 Widespread use and less expensive
 These sensors provide superior technical characteristics that are
driving main changes within several fields.
 Quick response time.
 These are durable.
 They have a simple construction.
 Accuracy is good.
 These are rugged.
 These are nonlinear.
 Recalibration is not easy.
 More vulnerable to EMI/ RFI.(EMI (Electromagnetic Interference) is also called RFI (Radio Frequency Interference).
 These have a less o/p voltage.
 When the output voltage is extremely small then it requires
amplification
 Thermal sensors are used everywhere like in our refrigerators, kettles,
water heaters, microwaves, etc.
 Non-contact thermal sensors are used in the COVID-19 pandemic to
check temperatures.
 These are also used in food processors, medical systems, petrochemical
systems, boilers, etc.
 These sensors are used for monitoring the temperature of gases, solids,
or liquids at a wide range of temperatures.
 These types of sensors measure the surfaces’ temperature, whether
they are organic, geologic, or man-made.
 These are used in a broad range of markets which ranges from sports &
leisure to defense & automotive.
 A Resistance Temperature Detector (also known as a Resistance
Thermometer or RTD) is an electronic device used to determine the
temperature by measuring the resistance of an electrical wire.
 This wire is referred to as a temperature sensor.
 If we want to measure temperature with high accuracy, an RTD is the
ideal solution, as it has good linear characteristics over a wide range
of temperatures.
 Other common electronics devices used to measure temperature
include a thermocouple or a thermistor.
 When the temperature of a metal increases, the resistance to the
flow of electricity increases as well.
 An electrical current is passed through the sensor, the resistance
element is used to measure the resistance of the current being
passed through it.
 As the temperature of the resistance element increases the electrical
resistance also increases.
Thin-film RTDs
made by depositing a thin layer of metal which in most cases is platinum on a
ceramic substrate material. The metal film is laser cut or etched into an
electrical circuit pattern that provides the specified amount of resistance. Lead
wires are then attached, and a thin protective glass coating is applied to the
entire element.
The advantages of the thin-film RTDs are that they are reliable and are produced
at a low cost. Moreover, they are more damage resistant from vibrations.
Wire-wound RTDs
Its sensing element comprises a small coil of ultra-thin platinum wire. The wire
coil is commonly packaged inside a ceramic or glass tube or the wire can be
wound around the outside of a ceramic or glass housing material.
The advantages of wire-wound RTDs are that they are very accurate and those
with glass cores can readily be immersed in many liquids, while those with
ceramic cores can be used to accurately measure extremely high temperatures..
RTD temperature sensor
 A thermistor is a variable resistor, which resistance is dependent on
temperature, comparing it to the standard resistors.
 It comprises of sintered semiconductor material which exhibits a
change in resistance with a small change in temperature.
 A thermistor changes its resistance, according to the temperature it
is immersed in.
 Some thermistors have a positive temperature coefficient where the
resistance increases as temperature increases (PTC), while others
have a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) where the resistance
decreases as temperature increases.
 In general, thermistors are divided into two types based on their
conduction model.
 The first type is “Negative Temperature Coefficient (NTC)” which has
less resistance at higher temperatures.
 The second type is ‘’Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC)”. It has
more resistance at higher temperatures.
 The type of materials used in the thermistor dictates how much the
resistance will change based on the temperature changes.
 Thermistors are nonlinear, which means that the connection
between the temperature and resistance will not form a straight line,
but rather a curve on a graph where the line sits and how much it
changes depends on how the thermistor is made.
 Advantages of thermistors
 The first advantage of thermistors is that they are very cheap and are
used in high-volume applications such as white goods. Another one is
that they require only two wires going between the instrument and
the sensor.
 Disadvantages of thermistors
 One disadvantage of thermistors is that they are not very accurate,
compared to thermocouples or resistance thermometers. Moreover,
thermistors are extremely non-linear.
 They are especially non-linear at high temperatures, so it is best to
use them for measurements of less than 100°C. Finally, they need an
excitation current, more commonly known as a voltage source.
 https://www.electrical4u.com/resistance-temperature-detector-or-rtd-
construction-and-working-principle/
 https://peaksensors.co.uk/blog/what-is-thermistor/