A combined measurement of thermal and mechanical relaxation

In order to describe relaxation the thermodynamic coefficient 1βS=(∂V∂S)p can be generalized into a complex frequency-dependent cross response function. We explore theoretically the possibility of measuring 1βS(ω) for a supercooled liquid near the glass transition. This is done by placing a thermistor in the middle of the liquid which itself is contained in a spherical piezoelectric shell. The piezoelectric voltage response to a thermal power generated in the thermistor is found to be proportional to 1βS(ω) but factors pertaining to heat diffusion and adiabatic compressibility κS(ω) do also intervene. We estimate a measurable piezoelectric voltage of 1 mV to be generated at 1 Hz for a heating power of 0.3 mW. Together with κS(ω) and the longitudinal specific heat cl(ω) which may also be found in the same setup a complete triple of thermoviscoelastic response functions may be determined when supplemented with shear modulus data.