Self consistently calibrated photopyroelectric calorimeter for the high resolution simultaneous absolute measurement of the specific heat and of the thermal conductivity

High temperature resolution study of the specific heat and of the thermal conductivity over the smecticA-nematic and nematic-isotropic phase transitions in octylcynobephenyl liquid crystal using a new photopyroelectric calorimetry configuration are reported, where, unlike previously adopted ones, no calibration is required other than the procedure used during the actual measurement. This makes photopyroelectric calorimetry suitable for “absolute” measurements of the thermal parameters like most other existing conventional calorimetric techniques where, however, the thermal conductivity cannot be measured.