Effect of fast electron irradiation on the dielectric and pyroelectric response of radially-oriented PVDF film

Radiation-induced functionalization of ferroelectric P(VDF/TrFE) copolymers was found to be effective in production of polymer relaxors attractive for applications. We studied radiation-induced changes in the dielectric relaxation and pyroelectric response of radially oriented PVDF film irradiated with electrons of energies 0.5-1.5 MeV. Radiation damage to the samples was characterized by ESR and IR spectroscopy. An increase in activation energy of segmental motion of the polymer and a downward shift of the freezing temperature of segmental motion and the Curie temperature, induced by electron irradiation, was related to a damage in all-trans conformation of the polymer chain and formation of polar regions.