What happens to the resistance of an NTC thermistor when it is heated?

An NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) thermistor is a type of resistor whose resistance decreases as the temperature increases. This property makes NTC thermistors particularly useful in temperature sensing and temperature regulation applications. When the thermistor is heated, the increase in temperature causes the charge carriers in the thermistor material to gain energy and move more freely. As a result, the number of charge carriers increases, leading to a decrease in resistance.

This behavior is in contrast to PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) thermistors, which have an increasing resistance with rising temperature. Understanding the characteristics of NTC thermistors is crucial for applications where precise temperature measurements are needed, such as in heating systems or electronic temperature controls.