Electrical Breakdown Studies on Electro-active Paper

The concept of using cellulose as a smart material for preparing electro-active paper (EAPap) has been a land mark discovery, since it exhibits an impressive magnitude of actuation at relatively modest voltages. Considering the small thickness of cellulose samples (35 mum) and smaller depth of electrodes (100 nm), even at relatively low operating voltages (7 V), high electrical stresses can exist at pointed asperities on electrode surface, non-uniform locations in cellulose structure and at triple points joining electrode, cellulose and air. This paper reports the results of our AC and DC breakdown tests on cellulose samples carried out according to ASTM standards. The variation of breakdown strengths with relative humidity levels has been investigated and the results are explained with the aid of Maxwell-Wagner effect.