Physics II / The Third Law and Low Temperatures
Practice question · Match the pairs

Match each statement of the third law or its consequences to what it says.

  • Nernst statement
  • Planck statement
  • Unattainability
  • Vanishing heat capacities
  • No finite sequence of steps reaches absolute zero
  • Required for the entropy integral to converge
  • The entropy of a perfect crystal itself tends to zero
  • Isothermal entropy changes vanish as T approaches zero
Hints
  1. Two are statements of the law and two are consequences of it.
  2. Planck’s version is the stronger of the two statements.
Show the answer
  • Nernst statement Isothermal entropy changes vanish as T approaches zero
  • Planck statement The entropy of a perfect crystal itself tends to zero
  • Unattainability No finite sequence of steps reaches absolute zero
  • Vanishing heat capacities Required for the entropy integral to converge
Why

Nernst constrains entropy changes; Planck fixes the absolute value itself. Unattainability and vanishing heat capacities both follow, the latter because S=(C/T)dTS = \int (C/T)dT must converge at the lower limit.

Read the lesson: The Third Law and Low Temperatures →

Practise The Third Law and Low Temperatures

The app has 5 more questions on this lesson, and keeps your place in the course. Physics II is free to start.

More questions on The Third Law and Low Temperatures