Compared to thermistors, RTDs have which characteristic?

• A. RTDs have near-linear resistance increase with temperature, with excellent stability and accuracy over wide ranges.
• B. Thermistors have near-linear resistance increase with temperature and excellent stability.
• C. RTDs have highly nonlinear resistance changes with temperature.
• D. Thermistors are ideal for precise industrial sensing across wide ranges.

Answer: (A)

RTDs use metal, usually platinum, whose resistance increases with temperature in a nearly linear fashion over a broad range. This linear-ish response, combined with excellent long-term stability and good accuracy, makes RTDs reliable for precision industrial temperature measurement across wide ranges. In contrast, thermistors are semiconductors whose resistance changes nonlinearly with temperature, especially over broader ranges, and while they can be very sensitive, their behavior isn’t near-linear and their stability across wide ranges isn’t as strong. So the statement that RTDs have a nearly linear R-T increase with high stability and accuracy over wide ranges best captures their characteristic.