Heat and Thermodynamics

9.14 Third Law of Thermodynamics

In 1906, Nernst proposed a new theorem called heat theorem derived from thermodynamic considerations supported by a series of experimental evidences on dealing with atomic heat at low temperature. Its importance is very great and, hence, it is known as the third law of thermodynamics. It states, “the heat capacities of all solids tend to zero as the absolute zero is approached and that the internal energies and entropies of all substances become equal there, approaching their common value asymptotically tending to zero.” It follows neither from the 1st law, law of conservation of energy nor from the second law, law of transmutability of energy giving rise to the nature of a new law called the third law of thermodynamics, ...