Zeroth Law and Temperature

A. K. Kapoor

July 4, 2022

Contents
1 Plan of lecture 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3 Measurement of temperature: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4 Different type os thermometers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

1 Plan of lecture 5
1. Problems from Zemansky Chapter 1.

2. Isotherm.

3. Measurement of temperature.

4. Triple point of water T = 273.16 K.

5. Different type of thermometer.

6. Gas Thermometer.

7. Ideal gas temperature.

8. Celsius Temperature scale.

2 Temperature
The zeroth law implies that when two systems in equilibrium some function of
coordinates hA (X, Y ) = hB (X ′ , Y ′ ).
Thus function essentially represents temperature. A curve

hA (X, Y ) = constant

represents a curve in XY plane which is called an isotherm of the system A

All states of states of system A corresponding to (X1 , Y1 ), (X2 , Y2 ) · · · points

represent states which are in equilibrium with states (X1′ , Y1′ ), (X2′ , Y2′ ) · · · of the
system represented by isotherms for system B

hB (X, Y ) = constant (1)

1
The quantity h(X, Y ), or some function of it, can be identified with temperature.

T
T 3
T 2
1

Isotherms are curves h(x,y)=T.

Fig. 1 A sketch of isotherms of an
ideal gas

3 Measurement of temperature:
ˆ Each isotherm is assigned a numerical value of temperature (system → ther-
mometer)

ˆ To every other system in thermal equilibrium with the thermometer we assign

the same number for the temperature.

Y = constant value Y1

Temperature is any function of X. In particular we take

θ(X) = a · X a = constant

X → thermometric property

4 Different type os thermometers

Thermometer X
Constant volume Gas Pressure
Electric resistance wire Resistance
Thermocouple Thermal emf
Helium vapor Pressure
Paramagnetic salt susceptibility

Fix a assigning a numerical value of temperature and by measuring X when ther-

mometer is in equilibrium with a standard state of another system.
Triple point of water
Temperature of triple point of water is assigned value 273.16 K
273.16
a= XT P = value of the property X at the triple point
XT P
What is triple point? It is the temperature at which water, water vapour and ice
are in equilibrium.

2
Constant volume gas thermometer A constant volume thermometer is sketched
in a diagram below.

Fig. 2

The bulb is put in contact with the system whose temperature is to measured. The
movable column of mercury is moved up or down and th volume of gas in the bulb is
brought back to a fixed value. The difference in the mercury levels gives a measure
of temperature of the system.

Ideal gas thermometer

Celcius and other temperature scales

REF: For details, see Zemansky and Dittman; Sears and Salinger