Highly sensitive pseudo-differential ac-nanocalorimeter for the study of the glass transition

Mohcine Laarraj (1, 2) , Rahma Adhiri (2) , Said Ouaskit (2) , Mohamed Moussetad (2) , Christophe Guttin (3) , Jacques Richard (1) , Jean-Luc Garden (4)

1 NEEL - TPS - Thermodynamique et biophysique des petits systèmes
2 UH2MC - Université Hassan II [Casablanca]
3 NEEL - ElecLab - Electronique
4 NEEL - Institut Néel

We present a nanocalorimeter designed for the measurement of the dynamic heat capacity of thin films. The microfabricated sensor, the thermal conditioning of the sensor as well as the highly stable and low noise electronic chain allow measurements of the real and imaginary parts of the complex specific heat with a resolution ∆C/C of about 10 −5. The performances of this quasi-differential nanocalorimeter were tested on a model of polymeric glass-former, the PVAc. The high stability and low noise of the device are essential for accurate studies on non-equilibrium slow relaxing systems such as glasses.

Mots clés: Thermal properties of amorphous solids and glasses: heat capacity; Glasses; thermal expansion; Thermal instruments and apparatus; Calorimeters; Specific phase transi-tions; Glasses and polymers

Domaines: Physique [physics]

Mohcine Laarraj, Rahma Adhiri, Said Ouaskit, Mohamed Moussetad, Christophe Guttin, et al.. Highly sensitive pseudo-differential ac-nanocalorimeter for the study of the glass transition. Review of Scientific Instruments, 2015, 86 (11), pp.115110. ⟨10.1063/1.4935491⟩. ⟨hal-01257649⟩