A method for performing uniaxial thermal fatigue test is described. This method utilizes a testing machine with the closed loop servo system. The advantage of this method is that the strain- and stress-ranges and the ratio of constrained strain to thermal strain, that is, constraint ratio, can be set to any condition. Particular emphasis is placed on the following description:
(1) the relationship between shapes of heating coil and temperature distributions,
(2) the method of measuring strain,
(3) the system controlling constraint ratio by using the closed loop servo system,
(4) the difference between the stress-strain relation during thermal fatigue test obtained by the present method and that by the Coffin type testing method, and
(5) the presentation and discussion of experimental data on 0.16% carbon steel.