Physics Commons^™

The Pulsed Electro-Acoustic Method, Zack Gibson

Physics Student Research

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 …