Temperature measurement: Christiansen wavelength and blackbody reference

The aim of this paper is to propose simple and reliable methods to measure temperatures exceeding 1500 degrees C by pyrometry on dielectric heteropolar compounds. By adopting a spectroscopic approach based on a knowledge of the material (chemical composition, texture, size), it is suggested first to work at the Christiansen wavelength that is nearly independent of temperature, the texture, and the shape. Second, recent developments concerning plate blackbodies that are operable up to 1600 K are presented. Such compact systems are suitable to be installed in industrial heating devices in order to easily calibrate the pyrometer.