Kelvin

W. Thomson
W. Thomson
The kelvin scale is a temperature scale named after the Irish mathematician and physicist William Thomson baron of Kelvin (1701 - 1744). The calibration points are the absolute zero (0 K) and the freezing point of water (273.15 K).

The unit kelvin (K) is defined by fixing Boltzmann's constant kB to be 1.380,649×10-23 J·K-1 (= kg·m2·s-2·K-1), where second, meter and kilogram are defined in terms of atomic clock, speed of light and Planck's constant.

The kelvin scale is also referred to as "absolute temperature".

Related units

  • base units
  • celsius
  • degree

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