Conductivity states changes in plasticized PVC films near breakdown threshold voltages values

Abstract

The near threshold "soft breakdown" measurements of PVC films conductivity are investigated. In a wide range of external electric field strength for various rather thick (>20 mkm) PVC films the resistance shows strong nonlinearity and seems to enter high conductive state close to the breakdown threshold. For our "thick" films boundary conditions electrode surface specifics should not be so important as in thin polymer films experiments. Both fast, instant mechanisms of nonlinearity, and effects of accumulation and delay responce were observed. The phenomena corresponding to reversible transitions in a state with rather high conductivity, seems to be similar to ones registered earlier in thin layers of some broad-bandgap polymers. In a range of relatively low field intensity, far from a threshold breakdown, as a result of reversible switches between normal and high resistivity states a polymer film in a standard measuring cell formed a relaxation generator giving a loud enough sound signal with frequency increasing with the increase of external field.