Thermopile Sensors

Heimann Sensor offers a wide range of thermopile sensors for non-contact temperature measurements and NDIR gas detection. Thermopiles consist of many thermocouples that are usually connected in series. They generate a small electric voltage when exposed to infrared (IR) radiation or heat. We produce sensor chips in different sizes. Small sensor chips like 0.6x0.6 mm² and 0.76x0.76 mm² are best for remote temperature measurements due to their optimized performance-cost ratio. The bigger chips like 1.2x1.2 mm² or even 2.1x2.1 mm² are ideally suited for NDIR gas detection. They provide enough signal to measure even high gas concentrations. 

As the thermopile sensor generates an electric voltage signal that depends on the temperature difference between incoming radiation and sensor itself, it can only give relative temperature information in the first place. To obtain an absolute temperature information, all thermopile sensors come with an integrated thermistor temperature reference. This can be used to calculate the absolute temperature from the thermistor value and the generated voltage signal.

Besides single element sensors in various packages from SMD to small TO-46 and TO-39, we also produce sensors with two or four elements for gas concentration measurements.

All TO-packaged sensors can be equipped with a lens to reduce the field of view (FOV) to measure from larger distances or to provide a smaller measurement spot for more accurate temperature detection.

If you are looking for thermopile sensors with integrated signal conditioning, you might want to check out our thermopile modules .