What is "heat capacity"

n. (context physics English) The capability of a substance to absorb heat energy; specifically, the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one mole or gram of a substance by one degree Celsius without any change of phase

Heat capacity or thermal capacity is a measurable physical quantity equal to the ratio of the heat added to (or removed from) an object to the resulting temperature change. The SI unit of heat capacity is joule per kelvin $\mathrm{\tfrac{J}{K}}$ and the dimensional form is . Specific heat is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of mass by 1 kelvin.

Heat capacity is an extensive property of matter, meaning it is proportional to the size of the system. When expressing the same phenomenon as an intensive property, the heat capacity is divided by the amount of substance, mass, or volume, so that the quantity is independent of the size or extent of the sample. The molar heat capacity is the heat capacity per unit amount (SI unit: mole) of a pure substance and the specific heat capacity, often simply called specific heat, is the heat capacity per unit mass of a material. Nonetheless some authors state the term specific heat to refer to the ratio of the specific heat capacity of a substance at any given temperature, to the specific heat capacity of another substance at a reference temperature, much in the fashion of a specific gravity. Occasionally, in engineering contexts, the volumetric heat capacity is used.

Temperature reflects the average randomized kinetic energy of constituent particles of matter (e.g. atoms or molecules) relative to the centre of mass of the system, while heat is the transfer of energy across a system boundary into the body other than by work or matter transfer. Translation, rotation, and vibration of atoms represent the degrees of freedom of motion which classically contribute to the heat capacity of gases, while only vibrations are needed to describe the heat capacities of most solids , as shown by the Dulong–Petit law. Other contributions can come from magnetic and electronic degrees of freedom in solids, but these rarely make substantial contributions.

For quantum mechanical reasons, at any given temperature, some of these degrees of freedom may be unavailable, or only partially available, to store thermal energy. In such cases, the specific heat capacity is a fraction of the maximum. As the temperature approaches absolute zero, the specific heat capacity of a system approaches zero, due to loss of available degrees of freedom. Quantum theory can be used to quantitatively predict the specific heat capacity of simple systems.