The influence of pre-conditioning on space charge formation in LDPE

In this paper, the authors present space charge accumulation data for planar low density polyethylene samples subjected to 20 kV/mm DC fields at room temperature. The data were obtained using the laser-induced-pressure-pulse (LIPP) technique. Some of the samples were conditioned by holding them at 40/spl deg/C in short-circuit at rotary pump pressure for 48 hrs prior to measurement. Such conditioning had no consistent effect on the space charge. The extent of charge injection/extraction at the semicon electrodes appeared to vary considerably between samples.