A thermistor is a sensor device; it converts temperature changes into changes in what electrical property?

A thermistor is a sensor device; it converts temperature changes into changes in what electrical property?

• A. Current
• B. Resistance
• C. Capacitance
• D. Inductance

Answer: (B)

Thermistors are temperature-sensitive resistors, so the key thing that changes with temperature is resistance. As temperature varies, the material’s resistance shifts significantly, and that change is what the sensor outputs. In practice you often place the thermistor in a circuit like a voltage divider and monitor the voltage; that voltage tracks the thermistor’s changing resistance, giving you a temperature reading. There are two common types: NTC, where resistance decreases as temperature rises, and PTC, where resistance increases with temperature. Capacitance and inductance don’t describe how a thermistor responds to temperature, so they aren’t the sensor’s output. The current in the circuit depends on the applied voltage and the resistance, but the intrinsic property that the thermistor converts temperature into is resistance.

Thermistors are temperature-sensitive resistors, so the key thing that changes with temperature is resistance. As temperature varies, the material’s resistance shifts significantly, and that change is what the sensor outputs. In practice you often place the thermistor in a circuit like a voltage divider and monitor the voltage; that voltage tracks the thermistor’s changing resistance, giving you a temperature reading. There are two common types: NTC, where resistance decreases as temperature rises, and PTC, where resistance increases with temperature. Capacitance and inductance don’t describe how a thermistor responds to temperature, so they aren’t the sensor’s output. The current in the circuit depends on the applied voltage and the resistance, but the intrinsic property that the thermistor converts temperature into is resistance.