Hot electron transport and dielectric breakdown in polymeric dielectrics

A new technique for directly measuring the energy and momentum loss rates of hot electrons as a function of their kinetic energy E in dielectrics is presented. The relation between the dielectric breakdown on one side, the momentum scattering rate γ
p
(E) and the LO phonon emission rate γ
u
^LO
(E) of hot electrons on the other side is essential and direct and can be seen through the expression equation which controls the properties of hot electrons in an electrical field F. Indeed, this integral is the only non-trivial term in the equations yielding their energy distribution and their ionization rate in an insulator with an ionization energy large compared to the energy loss per scattering event [1].