which is essentially the Steinhart–Hart equation with , and , where the temperatures and the B parameter are in kelvins, and R0 is the resistance at temperature T0 (25 °C = 298.15 K). Solving for R yields or, alternatively, where . This can be solved for the temperature: The B-parameter equation can also be written as . This can be used to convert the function of resistance vs. temperature of a thermistor into a linear function of vs. . The average slope of this function will then yield an estimate of the value of the B parameter. Conduction model NTC (negative temperature coefficient) Many NTC thermistors are made from a pressed disc, rod, plate, bead or cast chip of semiconducting material such as sintered metal oxides. They work because raising the temperature of a semiconductor increases the number of active charge carriers by promoting them into the conduction band. The more charge carriers that are available, the more current a material can conduct. In certain materials like ferric oxide (Fe2O3) with titanium (Ti) doping an n-type semiconductor is formed and the charge carriers are electrons. In materials such as nickel oxide (NiO) with lithium (Li) doping a p-type semiconductor is created, where holes are the charge carriers. This is described in the formula where = electric current (amperes), = density of charge carriers (count/m3), = cross-sectional area of the material (m2), = drift velocity of electrons (m/s), = charge of an electron ( coulomb). Over large changes in temperature, calibration is necessary. Over small changes in temperature, if the right semiconductor is used, the resistance of the material is linearly proportional to the temperature. There are many different semiconducting thermistors with a range from about 0.01 kelvin to 2,000 kelvins (−273.14 °C to 1,700 °C). The IEC standard symbol for a NTC thermistor includes a "−t°" under the rectangle. PTC (positive temperature coefficient) Most PTC thermistors are made from doped polycrystalline ceramic (containing barium titanate (BaTiO3) and other compounds) which have the property that their resistance rises suddenly at a certain critical temperature. Barium titanate is ferroelectric and its dielectric constant varies with temperature. Below the Curie point temperature, the high dielectric constant prevents the formation of potential barriers between the crystal grains, leading to a low resistance. In this region the device has a small negative temperature coefficient. At the Curie point temperature, the dielectric constant drops sufficiently to