Electric-field profiles in corona- or electron-beam-charged and thermally treated Teflon PTFE, FEP, and PFA films

Charge spreading in three different types of Teflon electrets was studied by means of piezoelectrically generated pressure steps, FEP and PFA samples corona-charged at room temperature usually exhibited only a surface charge layer. Uniform charge spreading throughout the bulk was found in FEP charged at or heated to high temperatures. Charge spreading was much less prominent in PFA because of a smaller retrapping efficiency. In PTFE (polytetrafluorethylene), charges from the surface and the rear electrode were injected into the bulk during charging at any temperature. Electron-beam-deposited charge layers broadened significantly upon heating