Aim

Investigate how the amount of infrared radiation absorbed or radiated by a surface depends on the nature of that surface.

Equipment List

Leslie cube (a cube with different surfaces: shiny metallic, matt white, shiny black, matt black - in order of least to most emmiting surface)
Kettle
30cm ruler
Stopwatch
Infrared detector
Heatproof mat

Align the infrared detector with one side of the Leslie Cube, 20cm away from the side, and take the initial temperature of the surface.
Heat one side of the Leslie Cube by pouring hot water onto the surface.
Measure and record the temperature of the surface every 30s for five minutes.
Rotate the cube and repeat the experiment for a different surface.
Plot temperature (plot on y-axis, measured in C) against time (plot on x-axis, measured in seconds) for each different surface.

Take care handling hot water, be careful not to scold yourself and mop up any water spillages.
Avoid spilling water on any electrics of the infrared detector