Presentation
The Pulsed Electro-Acoustic Method
Utah State University Physics Colloquium
(2017)
Abstract
A Pulsed Electro-Acoustic (PEA) system has been developed and is being used to study electron
charge injection, transport, and relaxation in highly disordered insulating materials. The material is
placed between two electrodes in a parallel plate configuration. The sample is injected with charge via
electrode charging by applying a high voltage across the sample. The distribution of charge in the
dielectric is measured with PEA by applying a ~100 MHz ~850 V electric pulse to displace the
embedded charge, causing an acoustic pulse monitored via time-of-flight with a thin piezoelectric
sensor allowing observation of charge accumulation and dissipation. Measurements of the time
evolution of the charge profiles within 100 μm LDPE using the PEA system were compared to
predicted models and to previous studies; these were used to verify that the new system is working
as expected and to characterize the system’s resolution and capabilities. Higher spatial resolution
nondestructive PEA measurements of embedded charge in dielectrics offer important information for
applications such as spacecraft charging, plasma deposition, accelerator physics, high voltage
devices and transmission lines, supercapacitors, microelectronics, and nanodielectric materials.
Disciplines
Publication Date
Fall 2017
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Citation Information
Zachary Gibson. "The Pulsed Electro-Acoustic Method" Utah State University Physics Colloquium (2017) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/zachary-gibson/35/