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The stellar adiabatic exponents are fixed-composition, constant-specific entropy derivatives:The chain rule gives ${\Gamma }_1({\Gamma }_2-1)/{\Gamma }_2={\Gamma }_3-1$. Define the pressure derivatives ${\chi }_{\rho }=(\partial \log P/\partial \log \rho {)}_T$ and ${\chi }_T=(\partial \log P/\partial \log T{)}_{\rho }$. The first law of thermodynamics, with $du=Tds+Pd\rho /{\rho }^2$, givesCombining this with $d\log P={\chi }_{\rho }d\log \rho +{\chi }_{T}d\log T$ on an adiabat givesThus the specific-heat ratio is not generally equal to the three stellar adiabatic exponents.

For the mixture, ${\chi }_{\rho }=\beta$ and ${\chi }_T=4-3\beta$. The specific heat capacity at constant volume, obtained by differentiating $u$ at fixed mass density, isTherefore the adiabatic exponents of a monatomic gas-radiation mixture and its specific-heat ratio areIf a relation involving only the exponents is wanted, eliminate $\beta$ from ${\Gamma }_1=\beta +(4-3\beta )({\Gamma }_3-1)$:For a pure monatomic perfect gas, $\beta =1$ and $\gamma ={\Gamma }_1={\Gamma }_2={\Gamma }_3=5/3$. For any calorically perfect gas with constant heat capacities, the same equality holds with its own ${\gamma }_g$. In a genuine gas-radiation mixture, $0<\beta <1$, $\gamma ={\Gamma }_1/\beta$ while the exponents are given separately above.

In the radiation limit, ${\Gamma }_1={\Gamma }_2={\Gamma }_3=4/3$ and the adiabatic temperature gradient is $1/4$. This follows independently from photon entropy: a comoving volume $V$ has $S\propto V{T}^3$, so an adiabat obeys $T\propto V^{-1/3}$ and $P\propto V^{-4/3}$. However, $c_P/c_V$ is singular in the pure-radiation limit, not $4/3$. This is the pure-radiation constant-pressure heat-capacity singularity. The equation $P=a{T}^4/3$ fixes temperature whenever pressure is fixed, so an ordinary constant-pressure temperature derivative is not available; along the mixture limit $\gamma \to \infty$ and $\beta \gamma \to 4/3$. For photons alone, mass-specific quantities additionally require a material mass label. The often quoted radiation index $4/3$ is its pressure-density adiabatic exponent, not a finite constant-pressure/constant-volume heat-capacity ratio.