Specific heat of Cu nano-films by using electrical micro-pulses at room conditions

The specific heat of nanometric Cu films (20 to 200 nm thickness) deposited on glass substrates at atmospheric pressure and room temperature was obtained. An experimental system for applying electrical micro-pulses on the films permits to acquire changes of electrical resistance (i.e. changes of temperature) with time at room conditions. By using the initial heating slope, the mass and the absorbed energy of the Cu films, the specific heat was determined. The estimated specific heat values show an increase from 392 ± 57 to 612 ± 126 J/kg K when the film thickness decreases from 200 to 20 nm, which is attributed to a decrease of the grain size of the Cu samples.