Thermal detectors operate by using a matched pair of thermistors to sense heat. One thermistor is exposed to the ambient temperature, the other is sealed. In normal conditions the two thermistors register similar temperatures, but, on the development of a fire, the temperature recorded by the exposed thermistor will increase rapidly, resulting in an imbalance, causing the detector to change into the alarm state.
Rate-of-rise detectors are designed to detect a fire as the temperature increases, but they also have a fixed upper limit at which the detector will go into alarm if the rate of temperature increase has been too slow to trigger the detector earlier. Externally, the thermal detectors have wide openings to the surrounding atmosphere to allow good movement of air around the external thermistor. IP rating = IP23D