I wasn't aware of "photon multiplication" as a potential hindrance to IR testing (in the context of thermometry) until recently, but it is a hot topic in Optics journals these days. Was it even mentioned wrt Lugano? Doubt it. For instance - with quantum dots as the receptor, 7 new visible photons can be emitted from every UV photon entering the dot. This would change the blackbody curve of the thermal emitter should it also be a UV emitter. Does the glow stick contain quantum dots and does the gain involve UV? The would greatly alter assumptions.
Much was made of the alumina emissivity problem, but that is a different subject than photon multiplication (which relates to another underlying assumption - that the thermal emitter is not an intrinsic light source). Thus, emissivity is different from multiplication - and both can cause errors. Bob Higgins revised the suspected Lugano temperature down to 1100C, from the original 1410C - based on an emissivity correction, but if photon multiplication was happening at the same time, and the E-Cat is an intrinsic UV emitter - there could be even less energy gain than the thermal calculation indicates. The sad thing is that in both cases, the simple expedient of a specialty black coating could solve the problem. Surely MFMP are now aware of the necessity of such a coating. Here is one of many companies which provides them. http://www.aremco.com/high-emissivity-coatings/ According to E-Cat World, a new glow-stick test is underway. The plan is to use a non-contact thermometry again, including an IR thermometer rather than the thermocouple that was used with the Padua test. Both the IR thermometer and the Optris Pi 160 will give incorrect readings if IR photons are multiplied in the range in which they operate. unless coated. Personally, I do not believe that K-type thermocouples will be accurate either, so the black coating is a must. Type K may be used up to 1260C in non-oxidizing or inert atmospheres. According to experts, in marginally oxidizing atmosphere, such as coated with a ceramic cement and operating in air, the situation is different. As low as 800C the chromel wire of the pair will start to corrode in a phenomenon known as "green rot". Anyway, if it's not too late - please paint the reactor with high emissivity paint and use a platinum thermocouple. Otherwise - expect to hear the same complaints from skeptics as before.
