On the mechanism of tree initiation in polymers

The tree initiation voltage, the initial tree penetration length and breakdown voltage in polyethylene, cross-linked polyethylene and acetophenone (1%) doped polyethylene have been measured under dc and ac voltage conditions using both the needle-plate and the needle-needle electrode configurations. The results show that all these high-field dielectric properties are strongly dependent on the polarity of the applied voltage at the needle, the defects created by cross-linking or impurity-doping in polyethylene, the geometric arrangement of the electrodes and the symmetry of the initial electric fields applied to the samples. The strong dependence of the dielectric properties on these parameters indicates that tree initiation is associated with electron and hole injection from electrodes and impact ionization by electrons in high-field regions with free volumes or mechanical cracking. The latter may be created during the manufacturing process of the materials (pre-existing defects) or by the high. field effects (post-introducing defects). In this paper we shall present our model for tree initiation, some new results and a brief discussion.