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Electrical Switching Phenomena in Transition Metal Glasses under the Influence of High Electric Fields
Author(s) -
Drake C. F.,
Scanlan I. F.,
Engel A.
Publication year - 1969
Publication title -
physica status solidi (b)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1521-3951
pISSN - 0370-1972
DOI - 10.1002/pssb.19690320121
Subject(s) - condensed matter physics , thermal conduction , dielectric , electron , electric field , dipole , polarization (electrochemistry) , materials science , electrical resistivity and conductivity , chemistry , physics , optoelectronics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , composite material
A mechanism is proposed to account for the phenomena observed in many vitreous systems of field‐induced switching between two or more conducting states. Conduction in the high resistance state is assumed to involve electron hopping between non‐identical sites. The vitreous nature of the systems precludes extrinsic conduction, and the equilibrium number of intrinsic carriers is shown to be a function of the degree of inequality of site configurations, temperature, field strength, and dielectric constant. The carrier mobility is a function of averaged distance between sites, of temperature, and dielectric constant. Dc conduction and dipole production and orientation are shown to be interrelated processes. The consequent non‐linear dependence of polarization on field leads to a quasi‐ferroelectric reorganization of the structure at a critical field strength. The structural reorganization makes the site environments more nearly identical, and thereby delocalizes the excess electrons on one of the sites producing semi‐metallic conduction. Local energy dissipation by the turn‐off pulse raises the lattice temperature sufficiently to allow the structure to relax to its initial state. The quantitative implications of the theory are developed, and compared with measurements on some copper glasses.