This is a two-part question I haven't been able to get off my mind:
Given a resistor in a vacuum chamber (to ideally eliminate heat loss due to air), assume you apply a constant voltage across it. The temperature of the resistor will rise – now, assuming heat lost to radiation and conduction to the wires is negligible, will the temperature of the resistor rise indefinitely? Or will the temperature max out at a certain value (and is there a way to calculate this value assuming you know the value of every property of the resistor and the voltage source)?
Finally, if there is a value the temperature will max out at, how consistent a temperature would this be if, for example, it maxes out at about 330 K?
Best Answer
If there is no heat loss (which is obviously not the case), the resistor will increase in temperature indefinitely, presumably until it melts.
In reality the temperature will increase until the sum of the heat loss through convection, conduction and radiation equals the input power.