# Heat
Editor: Create New Project › HEAT · Python: td.HeatChargeSimulation
A Heat project computes the steady temperature in a device: where heat is made, how it spreads through the materials, and where it leaves. For example, it shows how much a heater warms a waveguide. To use the temperature in an optical simulation, see Optical Perturbation and Convert to FDTD or Mode.
# How It Works
- Model: add the structures, and give their mediums Thermal Properties. A structure without thermal properties is left out of the heat simulation.
- Setup: add boundary conditions and heat sources, keep or add temperature monitors, and set the grid.
- Run Simulation: click Check Simulation, then run the simulation.
- Results: see the temperature recorded by each monitor.
# Get Started
Follow Create Your First Project and choose the HEAT tab. For a complete example, follow Find the Temperature Around a Heater. Then set up:
- Structures and their Material Thermal Response in the Model tab.
- Boundary Conditions, Sources and Monitors in the Setup tab.
- Configuration: the domain, the background medium, the grid and the symmetry. A new Heat project has no grid: set one before the check.
- Script Objects, if you need them.
Then see the Heat Results. If something goes wrong, see Heat Troubleshooting.