TY - JOUR A1 - Rosenhahn, Axel A1 - Finlay, John A. A1 - Pettit, Michala E. A1 - Ward, Andy A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Callow, Maureen E. A1 - Grunze, Michael A1 - Callow, James A. T1 - Zeta potential of motile spores of the green alga Ulva linza and the influence of electrostatic interactions on spore settlement and adhesion strength N2 - The zeta potential of the motile spores of the green alga (seaweed) Ulva linza was quantified by video microscopy in combination with optical tweezers and determined to be -19.3ñ1.1 mV. The electrostatic component involved in the settlement and adhesion of spores was studied using electret surfaces consisting of PTFE and bearing different net charges. As the surface chemistry remains the same for differently charged surfaces, the experimental results isolate the influence of surface charge and thus electrostatic interactions. Ulva spores were demonstrated to have a reduced tendency to settle on negatively charged surfaces and when they did settle the adhesion strength of settled spores was lower than with neutral or positively charged surfaces. These observations can be ascribed to electrostatic interactions. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://biointerphases.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1116/1.3110182 SN - 1559-4106 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Flores Suárez, Rosaura A1 - Singh, Rajeev A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Zerstörungsfreie Tomographie von Raumladungs- und Polarisationsverteilungen mittles Wärmepulsen N2 - Non-destructive, three-dimensional imaging of space-charge and polarization distributions in electret materials has been implemented by means of laser-induced thermal pulses. In pyroelectric films of poled poly(vinylidene fluoride), images of up to 45 x 45 pixels with a depth resolution of less than 0.5 mu m and a lateral resolution of 40 mu m were recorded, the latter being limited by fast thermal diffusion in the absorbing metallic front electrode. Initial applications include the analysis of polarization distributions in corona-poled piezoelectric sensor cables and the detection of patterned space-charge distributions in polytetrafluoroethylene films. Y1 - 2007 UR - http://www.oldenbourg-link.com/loi/teme U6 - https://doi.org/10.1524/teme.2007.74.9.437 SN - 0171-8096 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Bergweiler, Steffen A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Pucher, Andreas A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Voided space-charge electrets : piezoelectric transducer materials for electro-acoustic applications Y1 - 2004 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Voided polymer electrets : new materials, new challenges, new chances Y1 - 2002 SN - 0-7803-7560-2 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kollsche, Matthias A1 - Kalbitz, Rene A1 - Kappel, Marcel A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Vermittlung von Schlüsselkompetenzen für Biologen in der Studieneingangsphase Y1 - 2012 SN - 978-3- 937026-77-0 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Faria, Roberto M. A1 - Oliveira Jr., O. N. A1 - Giacometti, Jose A. T1 - Useful effects of space charge and dipole polarization: Recent developments in polymer electrets and organic semiconductors (Editorial) Y1 - 2006 UR - http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/servlet/opac?punumber=94 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2006.247817 SN - 1070-9878 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Jingwen A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Nguyen, Quyet Doan A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Unexpected bipolar space-charge polarization across transcrystalline interfaces in polypropylene electret films JF - Journal of applied physics N2 - A double-layer transcrystalline polypropylene (PP) film with a flat central interface layer between its two transcrystalline layers is obtained by recrystallization from the melt between two polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) surfaces on both sides of the PP film. Its electret properties are studied and compared with those of a single-layer transcrystalline PP film re-crystallized in contact with only one PTFE surface. Within experimental uncertainty, the two types of transcrystalline films exhibit the same thermal properties and crystallinities. After thermal poling, however, two hetero-charge layers of opposite polarity are found on the internal interfaces of the double-layer transcrystalline films and may together be considered as micrometer-sized dipoles. The unexpected phenomenon does not occur in single-layer transcrystalline samples without a central interface layer, suggesting that the interfaces between the transcrystalline layers and the micrometer-thick central interface layer may be the origin of deeper traps rather than the crystalline structures in the transcrystallites or the spherulites. The origin of the interfacial charges was also studied by means of an injection-blocking charging method, which revealed that intrinsic charge carriers introduced during recrystallization are most likely responsible for the interfacial charges. It is fascinating that a material as familiar as PP can exhibit such intriguing properties with a special bipolar space-charge polarization across the central interface layer after quasi-epitaxial surface moulding into a double-layer transcrystalline form. In addition to applications in electret (micro-)devices for electro-mechanical transduction, the highly ordered structures may also be employed as a new paradigm for studying charge storage and transport in polymer electrets and in dielectrics for DC electrical insulation. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0022071 SN - 0021-8979 SN - 1089-7550 VL - 128 IS - 13 PB - American Institute of Physics, AIP CY - Melville, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Paajanen, Mika A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Understanding the role of the gas in the voids during corona charging of cellular electret films : a way to enhance their piezoelectricity Y1 - 2001 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Gonzalez, Francisco Camacho A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Ultraviolet-induced discharge currents and reduction of piezoelectric coefficient in cellular polypropylene films Y1 - 2003 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Fohlmeister, Jens Bernd A1 - Tiersch, Brigitte A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Two-step inflation of cellular polypropylene films: Void-thickness increase and enhanced electromechanical properties N2 - In cellular, electromechanically active polymer films, the so-called ferroelectrets, the cell size and shape distributions can be varied through a controlled inflation process. Up to now, high-pressure treatments were usually performed at elevated temperatures. There are, however, significant experimental limitations and complications if the pressure and temperature treatments are performed at the same time. Here, we demonstrate the controlled inflation of cellular polypropylene films by means of sepal-ate pressure and temperature treatments. Separate procedures are Much easier to implement. Excellent electromechanical properties were achieved with Such a two-step inflation process. The technique has significant potential for inflating large-area transducer films for electromechanical and electroacoustical applications Y1 - 2004 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Mellinger, Axel T1 - Turning polymer foams or polymer-film systems into ferroelectrets dielectric barrier discharges in voids JF - IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation N2 - Polymer foams and void-containing polymer-film systems with internally charged voids combine large piezoelectricity with mechanical flexibility and elastic compliance. This new class of soft materials (often called ferro-or piezoelectrets) has attracted considerable attention from science and industry. It has been found that the voids can be internally charged by means of dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) under high electric fields. The charged voids can be considered as man-made macroscopic dipoles. Depending on the ferroelectret structure and the pressure of the internal gas, the voids may be highly compressible. Consequently, very large dipole-moment changes can be induced by mechanical or electrical stresses, leading to large piezoelectricity. DBD charging of the voids is a critical process for rendering polymer foams piezoelectric. Thus a comprehensive exploration of DBD charging is essential for the understanding and the optimization of piezoelectricity in ferroelectrets. Recent studies show that DBDs in the voids are triggered when the internal electric field reaches a threshold value according to Townsend's model of Paschen breakdown. During the DBDs, charges of opposite polarity are generated and trapped at the top and bottom internal surfaces of the gas-filled voids, respectively. The deposited charges induce an electric field opposite to the externally applied one and thus extinguish the DBDs. Back discharges may eventually be triggered when the external voltage is reduced or turned off. In order to optimize the efficiency of DBD charging, the geometry (in particular the height) of the voids, the type of gas and its pressure inside the voids are essential factors to be considered and to be optimized. In addition, the influence of the plasma treatment on the internal void surfaces during the DBDs should be taken into consideration. KW - Ferroelectret KW - piezoelectret KW - dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) KW - effective polarization KW - man-made dipole Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2011.5704490 SN - 1070-9878 VL - 18 IS - 1 SP - 34 EP - 42 PB - Inst. of Electr. and Electronics Engineers CY - Piscataway ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Smykalla, David A1 - Ploss, Bernd A1 - Wübbenhorst, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Tuning the relaxor-ferroelectric properties of Poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene-chlorofluoroethylene) Terpolymer films by means of thermally induced micro- and nanostructures JF - Macromolecules : a publication of the American Chemical Society N2 - The effects of thermal processing on the micro- and nanostructural features and thus also on the relaxor-ferroelectric properties of a P(VDF-TrFE-CFE) terpolymer were investigated in detail by means of dielectric experiments, such as dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS), dielectric hysteresis loops, and thermally stimulated depolarization currents (TSDCs). The results were correlated with those obtained from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results from DRS and DSC show that annealing reduces the Curie transition temperature of the terpolymer, whereas the results from WAXD scans and FTIR spectra help to understand the shift in the Curie transition temperatures as a result of reducing the ferroelectric phase fraction, which by default exists even in terpolymers with relatively high CFE contents. In addition, the TSDC traces reveal that annealing has a similar effect on the midtemperature transition by altering the fraction of constrained amorphous phase at the interphase between the crystalline and the amorphous regions. Changes in the transition temperatures are in turn related to the behavior of the hysteresis curves on differently heat-treated samples. During heating, evolution of the hysteresis curves from ferroelectric to relaxor-ferroelectric, first exhibiting single hysteresis loops and then double hysteresis loops near the Curie transition of the sample, is observed. When comparing the dielectric-hysteresis loops obtained at various temperatures, we find that annealed terpolymer films show higher electric-displacement values and lower coercive fields than the nonannealed sample, irrespective of the measurement temperature, and also exhibit ideal relaxor- ferroelectric behavior at ambient temperatures, which makes them excellent candidates for applications at or near room temperature. By tailoring the annealing conditions, it has been shown that the application temperature could be increased by fine tuning the induced micro- and nanostructures. KW - Annealing (metallurgy) KW - Hysteresis KW - Insulators KW - Phase transitions KW - Polarization Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.macromol.2c00302 SN - 0024-9297 SN - 1520-5835 VL - 55 IS - 13 SP - 5621 EP - 5635 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Stubning, Tobias A1 - Denes, Istvan A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Tuning electro-mechanical properties of EAP-based haptic actuators by adjusting layer thickness and number of stacked layers BT - a comparison JF - Engineering research express N2 - In our fast-changing world, human-machine interfaces (HMIs) are of ever-increasing importance. Among the most ubiquitous examples are touchscreens that most people are familiar with from their smartphones. The quality of such an HMI can be improved by adding haptic feedback-an imitation of using mechanical buttons-to the touchscreen. Thin-film actuators on the basis of electro-mechanically active polymers (EAPs), with the electroactive material sandwiched between two compliant electrodes, offer a promising technology for haptic surfaces. In thin-film technology, the thickness and the number of stacked layers of the electroactive dielectric are key parameters for tuning a system. Therefore, we have experimentally investigated the influence of the thickness of a single EAP layer on the electrical and the electro-mechanical performance of the transducer. In order to achieve high electro-mechanical actuator outputs, we have employed relaxor-ferroelectric ter-fluoropolymers that can be screen-printed. By means of a model-based approach, we have also directly compared single- and multi-layer actuators, thus providing guidelines for optimized transducer configurations with respect to the system requirements of haptic applications for which the operation frequency is of particular importance. KW - haptic feedback KW - vinylidenefluoride(VDF)-based polymers KW - screen-printed KW - systems KW - thin-film actuators KW - multi-layer systems KW - equivalent-circuit KW - modelling KW - electro-mechanically active polymers Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2631-8695/abd286 SN - 2631-8695 VL - 3 IS - 1 PB - Institute of Physics CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Treatment with orthophosphoric acid enhances the thermal stability of the piezoelectricity in low-density polyethylene ferroelectrets JF - Journal of applied physics N2 - Ferroelectrets have been fabricated from low-density polyethylene (LDPE) films by means of a template-based lamination. The temperature dependence of the piezoelectric d(33) coefficient has been investigated. It was found that low-density polyethylene ferroelectrets have rather low thermal stability with the piezoelectric coefficient decaying almost to zero already at 100 degrees C. This behavior is attributed to the poor electret properties of the polyethylene films used for the fabrication of the ferroelectrets. In order to improve the charge trapping and the thermal stability of electret charge and piezoelectricity, LDPE ferroelectrets were treated with orthophosphoric acid. The treatment resulted in considerable improvements of the charge stability in LDPE films and in ferroelectret systems made from them. For example, the charge and piezoelectric-coefficient decay curves shifted to higher temperatures by 60 K and 40 K, respectively. It is shown that the decay of the piezoelectric coefficient in LDPE ferroelectrets is governed by the relaxation of less stable positive charges. The treatment also leads to noticeable changes in the chemical composition of the LDPE surface. Infrared spectroscopy reveals absorption bands attributed to phosphorus-containing structures, while scanning electron microscopy shows new island-like structures, 50-200 nm in diameter, on the modified surface. Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4729866 SN - 0021-8979 VL - 111 IS - 12 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Spelzhausen, Simon A1 - Ionian, Mario-Rafael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Plath, Ronald T1 - Time-resolved measurement of space-charge evolution in dielectric films or slabs by means of repeatable laser-induced pressure pulses JF - Review of scientific instruments : a monthly journal devoted to scientific instruments, apparatus, and techniques N2 - A new variant of the Laser-Induced Pressure-Pulse (LIPP) method for repeatable, time-resolved space-charge profile measurements is proposed and demonstrated. Automated deposition of a fresh laser-target film before each illumination leads to good repeatability of the LIPP and thus allows for the detection of time-resolved changes in the space-charge distribution over many hours. We describe and discuss the experimental setup and its features, compare the repeatability of the LIPP measurements on the same sample without and with re-preparation of the test cell, and present the time-resolved evolution of the space-charge profile in a two-layer arrangement of a silicone-grease and a silicone-elastomer film as an example. Finally, the temperature dependence of the space-charge evolution during polarization under high voltage and during depolarization in short circuit is shown. Possible uses and future developments of the new LIPP approach are also discussed. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5142443 SN - 0034-6748 SN - 1089-7623 VL - 91 IS - 5 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fang, Peng A1 - Wang, Feipeng A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury T1 - Three-layer piezoelectrets from fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP) copolymer films JF - Applied physics : A, Materials science & processing N2 - A process for preparing three-layer piezoelectrets from fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP) copolymer films is introduced. Samples are made from commercial FEP films by means of laser cutting, laser bonding, electrode evaporation, and high-field poling. The observed dielectric-resonance spectra demonstrate the piezoelectricity of the FEP sandwiches. Piezoelectric d (33) coefficients up to a few hundred pC/N are achieved. Charging at elevated temperatures can increase the thermal stability of the piezoelectrets. Isothermal experiments for approximately 15 min demonstrate that samples charged at 140A degrees C keep their piezoelectric activity up to at least 120A degrees C and retain 70% of their initial d (33) even at 130A degrees C. Acoustical measurements show a relatively flat frequency response in the range between 300 Hz and 20 kHz. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-010-6008-2 SN - 0947-8396 SN - 1432-0630 VL - 103 IS - 2 SP - 455 EP - 461 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Fang, Peng A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Three-layer ferroelectrets from perforated Teflon-PTFE films fused between two homogeneous Teflon-FEP films Y1 - 2007 SN - 978-1-4244-1482-6 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Singh, Rajeev A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Lang, Sidney B. T1 - Three-dimensional mapping of polarization profiles with thermal pulses N2 - High-resolution, large-area three-dimensional mapping of polarization profiles in electret polymers was carried out by means of a fast thermal pulse technique with a focused laser beam. A lateral resolution of 38 mu m and a near- surface depth resolution of less than 0.5 mu m was achieved. At larger depths, fast thermal diffusion in the metal electrode rather than the laser spot size becomes the limiting factor for the lateral resolution. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics Y1 - 2005 SN - 0003-6951 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cheng, Z. Y. A1 - Katiyar, R. S. A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Thermally stimulated depolarization current of a nonlinear optical side-chain polymer Y1 - 1998 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Thermally stable dynamic piezoelectricity in sandwich films of porous and non-porous amorphous fluoropolymer Y1 - 2001 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Flores Suárez, Rosaura A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Singh, Rajeev T1 - Thermal-pulse tomography of polarization distributions in a cylindrical geometry JF - IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation N2 - Fast, three-dimensional polarization mapping in piezoelectric sensor cables was performed by means of the novel thermal-pulse tomography (TPT) technique with a lateral resolution of 200 mum. The active piezoelectric cable material (a copolymer of polyvinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene) was electrically poled with a point-to-cable corona discharge. A focused laser was employed to heat the opaque outer electrode, and the short-circuit current generated by the thermal pulse was used to obtain 3D polarization maps via the scale transformation method. The article describes the TPT technique as a fast non-destructive option for studying cylindrical geometries. Y1 - 2006 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2006.258210 SN - 1070-9878 VL - 13 IS - 5 SP - 1030 EP - 1035 PB - IEEE CY - Piscataway ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Thermal poling of ferroelectrets: How does the gas temperature influence dielectric barrier discharges in cavities? JF - Applied physics letters N2 - The influence of the temperature in the gas-filled cavities on the charging process of ferroelectret film systems has been studied in hysteresis measurements. The threshold voltage and the effective polarization of the ferroelectrets were determined as functions of the charging temperature TP. With increasing TP, the threshold voltage for triggering dielectric barrier discharges in ferroelectrets decreases. Thus, increasing the temperature facilitates the charging of ferroelectrets. However, a lower threshold voltage reduces the attainable remanent polarization because back discharges occur at lower charge levels, as soon as the charging voltage is turned off. The results are discussed in view of Paschen's law for electrical breakdown, taking into account the respective gas temperature and a simplified model for ferroelectrets. Our results indicate that the thermal poling scheme widely used for conventional ferroelectrics is also useful for electrically charging ferroelectrets. Ferroelectrets (sometimes also called piezoelectrets) are relatively new members of the family of piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectric materials.1–5 As their name indicates, ferroelectrets are space-charge electrets that show ferroic behavior. They are non-uniform electret materials or materials systems with electrically charged internal cavities. As space-charge electrets, ferroelectrets usually do not contain any molecular dipoles. However, the cavities inside the material can be turned into macroscopic dipoles through a series of micro-plasma discharges at high electric fields, so-called dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs).6–8 The gas inside the cavities is ionized when the internal electric field exceeds the threshold for electrical breakdown, generating charges of both polarities.9 The positive and negative charges travel in opposite directions, and are eventually trapped at the internal top and bottom surfaces of the cavities, respectively. After charging, the cavities may be regarded as macroscopic dipoles that can be switched by reversing the applied voltage. An electric-polarization-vs.-electric-field (P(E)) hysteresis is considered as an essential criterion for ferroelectricity. P(E)-hysteresis curves are usually characterized by the spontaneous polarization, the coercive field, and the remanent polarization. Recently, we have demonstrated P(E)-hysteresis loops on two different types of ferroelectrets, namely, cellular polypropylene ferroelectrets and tubular-channel fluoroethylene-polypropylene copolymer ferroelectrets.10,11 The P(E)-hysteresis loops not only prove the ferroic behavior of ferroelectrets, but also allow us to determine such parameters as the coercive field and the remanent polarization. It is widely accepted that Paschen breakdown is the underlying mechanism for the inception of DBDs in ferroelectrets.12–14 On this basis, the charging behavior and the resulting piezoelectricity of ferroelectrets in different gases at various pressures have been studied.15–17 Paschen's law describes the conditions for electrical breakdown in a gas at a constant temperature (usually room temperature), and it needs to be modified for gas breakdown at other temperatures. The temperature stability of the piezoelectricity in ferroelectrets after charging at elevated temperatures was investigated by several researchers.18–21 Recently, a preliminary report about the effects of the charging temperature on the hysteresis loops in ferroelectrets has been presented.22 In this letter, the influence of the gas temperature on the charging of ferroelectret systems is investigated in more detail by means of quasi-ferroelectric hysteresis-loop measurements. Teflon™ fluoroethylenepropylene (FEP) copolymer samples with tubular channels were prepared via thermal lamination as described previously.23 To this end, two FEP films with a thickness of 50 μm each were laminated at 300 ° C around a 100 μm thick polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) template (total area 35 mm × 45 mm) that contains parallel rectangular openings (area 1.5 mm × 40 mm each). After lamination, the template was removed, which results in an FEP film system with open tubular channels. The samples were metallized on both surfaces with aluminum electrodes of 20 mm diameter. P(E)-hysteresis loops were obtained with a modified Sawyer–Tower (ST) circuit.10,11 A high-voltage (HV) capacitor C1 (3 nF) and a large standard capacitor Cm (1 μF) were connected in series with the sample. A bipolar sinusoidal voltage with a frequency of 10 mHz was applied from an HV power supply (FUG HCB 7-6500) controlled by an arbitrary-waveform generator (HP 33120a). The voltage Vout on Cm is measured by means of an electrometer (HP 3458a), and the charge flowing through the circuit is determined as Q(t)=CmVout(t) . The experiments were carried out at isothermal conditions in a Novocontrol® Quatro cryosystem. With the modified ST circuit, Q–V loops have been measured on a tubular-channel FEP ferroelectret system at different temperatures. The sample capacitance of about 34.5 pF is determined by a linear fit of the initial part of the Q–V curve recorded at 20 °C , where the voltage has been raised up from zero on a fresh sample. The hysteresis loops are obtained from the Q–V curves by subtracting the contribution that results from charging of the sample capacitance.10 Figure 1 shows the hysteresis loops of the sample at −100, 0, and +100 ° C, respectively. According to previous theoretical and experimental studies,24,25 the length of each of the horizontal sides of the parallelogram-like hysteresis loops is given by 2Vth where Vth is the threshold voltage. As the charging temperature decreases, the hysteresis loop becomes wider and less high, i.e., the threshold voltage increases, while the polarization at maximum voltage decreases. Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4954263 SN - 0003-6951 SN - 1077-3118 VL - 108 SP - 1687 EP - 1697 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Mallepally, Rajendar Reddy A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Thermal and temporal stability of ferroelectret films made from cellular polypropylene/air composites N2 - Ferroelectrets are thin films of polymer foams, exhibiting piezoelectric properties after electrical charging. Ferroelectret foams usually consist of a cellular polymer structure filled with air. Polymer-air composites are elastically soft due to their high air content as well as due to the size and shape of the polymer walls. Their elastically soft composite structure is one essential key for the working principle of ferroelectrets, besides the permanent trapping of electric charges inside the polymer voids. The elastic properties allow large deformations of the electrically charged voids. However, the composite structure can also possibly limit the stability and consequently the range of applications because of, e. g., penetration of gas and liquids accompanied by discharge phenomena or because of a mechanical pre-load which may be required during the application. Here, we discuss various stability aspects related to the piezoelectric properties of polypropylene ferroelectrets. Near and below room temperature, the piezoelectric effect and the stability of the trapped charges are practically independent from humidity during long-time storage in a humid atmosphere or water, or from operating conditions, such as continuous mechanical excitation. Thermal treatment of cellular polypropylene above -10 degrees C leads to a softening of the voided structure which is apparent from the decreasing values of the elastic modulus. This decrease results in an increase of the piezoelectric activity. Heating above 60 degrees C, however, leads to a decrease in piezoelectricity Y1 - 2006 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Mallepally, Rajendar Reddy A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Thermal and temporal stability of ferroelectret films made from cellular polypropylene/air composites Y1 - 2006 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Jingwen A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Nguyen, Quyet Doan A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - The influence of orthophosphoric-acid surface modification on charge-storage enhancement in polypropylene electrets JF - Journal of applied physics N2 - Bipolar electrets from polypropylene (PP) are essential, e.g., in electret air filters and in cellular-foam ferroelectrets. Therefore, the mechanism of surface-charge stability enhancement on PP electrets via orthophosphoric-acid surface treatment is investigated in detail. It is shown that the significant charge-stability enhancement can be mainly attributed to deeper surface traps originating from deposited chemicals and topographic features on the modified surfaces. Thermally stimulated discharge of chemically treated and non-treated PP films with different surface-charge densities is used to test the limits of the newly formed deep traps in terms of the capacity for hosting surface charges. When the initial surface-charge density is very high, more charges are forced into shallower original traps on the surface or in the bulk of the treated PP samples, reducing the effect of the deeper surface traps brought by the surface modification. The well-known crossover phenomenon (of the surface-charge decay curves) has been observed between modified PP electrets charged to +/- 2kV and to +/- 3kV. Acoustically probed charge distributions in the thickness direction of PP electrets at different stages of thermal discharging indicate that the deep surface trapping sites may have preference for negative charges, resulting in the observed asymmetric charge stability of the modified PP films. Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0013805 SN - 0021-8979 SN - 1089-7550 VL - 128 IS - 3 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gidion, Gunnar A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - The Bow on a String BT - Bow Vibrations Detected with Ferroelectret Sensors JF - Acta Acustica united with Acustica N2 - The interaction between a bowed string instrument and its player is conveyed by the bow, the vibrational properties of which can be measured either separately on the bow or during the bowing procedure. Here, two piezoelectric film sensors, made of a ferroelectret material, are installed on a violin bow, one sensor at the tip and one at the frog. With these sensors, a violin is played under normal conditions, and the signals are analysed. The features in the resulting spectrograms are identified as string harmonics and longitudinal bow-hair resonances. The bow-hair sections on both sides of the bow-string contact exhibit separate resonances which are observed as absorption dips in the spectra. Owing to the sensor positions at the bow-hair terminations, it can be inferred that the two bow-hair sections act as mutual vibration absorbers. From a regression of the observed resonances, the longitudinal bow-hair velocity can be obtained. With additional film sensors under the violin bridge, body vibrations were also detected providing further details of the coupling mechanisms. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3813/AAA.919174 SN - 1610-1928 SN - 1861-9959 VL - 104 IS - 2 SP - 315 EP - 322 PB - Hirzel Verlag CY - Stuttgart ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Temporal evolution of the re-breakdown voltage in small gaps from nanoseconds to milliseconds JF - Applied physics letters N2 - A detailed understanding of electric breakdown in dielectrics is of scientific and technological interest. In gaseous dielectrics, a so-called re-breakdown is sometimes observed after extinction of the previous discharge. Although time-dependent re-breakdown voltage is essentially known, its behavior immediately after the previous discharge is not precisely understood. We present an electronic circuit for accurate measurements of the time-dependent re-breakdown voltage in small gaps from tens of nanoseconds to several milliseconds after the previous spark. Results from such experiments are compared with earlier findings, and relevant physical mechanisms such as heating of the gas, decay of the plasma, and ionization of excited atoms and molecules are discussed. It is confirmed that the thermal model is not valid at times below several microseconds. Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4773518 SN - 0003-6951 VL - 102 IS - 1 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury A1 - Jenninger, Werner A1 - Wagner, Joachim T1 - Template-based fluoroethylenepropylene piezoelectrets with tubular channels for transducer applications N2 - We describe the concept, the fabrication, and the most relevant properties of a piezoelectric-polymer system: Two fluoroethylenepropylene (FEP) films with good electret properties are laminated around a specifically designed and prepared polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) template at 300 degrees C. After removing the PTFE template, a two-layer FEP film with open tubular channels is obtained. For electric charging, the two-layer FEP system is subjected to a high electric field. The resulting dielectric barrier discharges inside the tubular channels yield a ferroelectret with high piezoelectricity. d(33) coefficients of up to 160 pC/N have already been achieved on the ferroelectret films. After charging at suitable elevated temperatures, the piezoelectricity is stable at temperatures of at least 130 degrees C. Advantages of the transducer films include ease of fabrication at laboratory or industrial scales, a wide range of possible geometrical and processing parameters, straightforward control of the uniformity of the polymer system, flexibility, and versatility of the soft ferroelectrets, and a large potential for device applications e.g., in the areas of biomedicine, communications, production engineering, sensor systems, environmental monitoring, etc. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://jap.aip.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3159039 SN - 0021-8979 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Abel, Markus A1 - Bergweiler, Steffen A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Synchronization of organ pipes : experimental observations and modeling N2 - We report measurements on the synchronization properties of organ pipes. First, we investigate influence of an external acoustical signal from a loudspeaker on the sound of an organ pipe. Second, the mutual influence of two pipes with different pitch is analyzed. In analogy to the externally driven, or mutually coupled self-sustained oscillators, one observes a frequency locking, which can be explained by synchronization theory. Further, we measure the dependence of the frequency of the signals emitted by two mutually detuned pipes with varying distance between the pipes. The spectrum shows a broad '' hump '' structure, not found for coupled oscillators. This indicates a complex coupling of the two organ pipes leading to nonlinear beat phenomena. Y1 - 2006 UR - http://scitation.aip.org/jasa/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1121/1.217044 SN - 0001-4966 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Cerny, J. A1 - Klemberg-Sapieha, J. A1 - Martinu, L. A1 - Wertheimer, M. R. A1 - Holländer, A. A1 - Behnisch, Juergen T1 - Surface-charging behavior of plasma-treated polymer films Y1 - 1998 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Feipeng A1 - Zhang, Zheng A1 - Yan, Yuyang A1 - Shen, Zijia A1 - Wang, Qiang A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Surface reconstruction on electro-spun PVA/PVP nanofibers by water evaporation JF - Nanomaterials N2 - Tailoring the secondary surface morphology of electro-spun nanofibers has been highly desired, as such delicate structures equip nanofibers with distinct functions. Here, we report a simple strategy to directly reconstruct the surface of polyvinyl alcohol/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVA/PVP) nanofibers by water evaporation. The roughness and diameter of the nanofibers depend on the temperature during vacuum drying. Surface changes of the nanofibers from smooth to rough were observed at 55 degrees C, with a significant drop in nanofiber diameter. We attribute the formation of the secondary surface morphology to the intermolecular forces in the water vapor, including capillary and the compression forces, on the basis of the results from the Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron (XPS) spectroscopy. The strategy is universally effective for various electro-spun polymer nanofibers, thus opening up avenues toward more detailed and sophisticated structure design and implementation for nanofibers. KW - surface reconstruction KW - intermolecular force KW - surface-roughened KW - nanofiber Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12050797 SN - 2079-4991 VL - 12 IS - 5 PB - MDPI CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Wübbenhorst, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Structure-property relationships in three-phase relaxor-ferroelectric terpolymers JF - Ferroelectrics N2 - Poly(vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene)-based (P(VDF-TrFE)-based) terpolymers represent a new class of electroactive polymer materials that are relaxor-ferroelectric (RF) polymers and that offer unique and attractive property combinations in comparison with conventional ferroelectric polymers. The RF state is achieved by introducing a fluorine-containing termonomer as a "defect" into the ferroelectric P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer, which reduces the interaction between the VDF/TrFE dipoles. The resulting terpolymer exhibits a low Curie transition temperature and small remanent and coercive fields yielding a slim hysteresis loop that is typical for RF materials. Though the macroscopic behavior is similar to RF ceramics, the mechanisms of relaxor ferroelectricity in semi-crystalline polymers are different and not fully understood yet. Structure-property relationships play an important role in RF terpolymers, as they govern the final RF properties. Hence, a review of important characteristics, previous studies and relevant developments of P(VDF-TrFE)-based terfluoropolymers with either chlorofluoroethylene (CFE) or chlorotrifluoroethylene (CTFE) as the termonomer is deemed useful. The role of the termonomer and of its composition, as well as the effects of the processing conditions on the semi-crystalline structure which in turn affects the final RF properties are discussed in detail. In addition, the presence of noteworthy transition(s) in the mid-temperature range and the influence of preparation conditions on those transitions are reviewed. A better understanding of the fundamental aspects affecting the semi-crystalline structures will help to elucidate the nature of RF activity in VDF-based terpolymers and also help to further improve their applications-relevant electroactive properties. KW - Relaxor-ferroelectric (RF) fluoropolymers KW - structure-property KW - relationships KW - Curie transition KW - dielectric hysteresis KW - thermal KW - processing KW - mid-temperature transition(s) Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/00150193.2021.2014260 SN - 0015-0193 SN - 1563-5112 VL - 586 IS - 1 SP - 60 EP - 81 PB - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group CY - Abingdon ER - TY - GEN A1 - Loupos, Konstantinos A1 - Damigos, Yannis A1 - Amditis, Angelos A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Schulze, Manuel A1 - Lenas, Sotiris-Angelos A1 - Chatziandreoglou, Christos A1 - Malliou, Christina A1 - Tsaoussidis, Vassilis A1 - Brady, Ken A1 - Frankenstein, Bernd T1 - Structural health monitoring system for bridges based on skin-like sensor T2 - IOP conference series : Materials science and engineering N2 - Structural health monitoring activities are of primal importance for managing transport infrastructure, however most SHM methodologies are based on point-based sensors that have limitations in terms of their spatial positioning requirements, cost of development and measurement range. This paper describes the progress on the SENSKIN EC project whose objective is to develop a dielectric-elastomer and micro-electronics-based sensor, formed from a large highly extensible capacitance sensing membrane supported by advanced microelectronic circuitry, for monitoring transport infrastructure bridges. Such a sensor could provide spatial measurements of strain in excess of 10%. The actual sensor along with the data acquisition module, the communication module and power electronics are all integrated into a compact unit, the SENSKIN device, which is energy-efficient, requires simple signal processing and it is easy to install over various surface types. In terms of communication, SENSKIN devices interact with each other to form the SENSKIN system; a fully distributed and autonomous wireless sensor network that is able to self-monitor. SENSKIN system utilizes Delay-/Disruption-Tolerant Networking technologies to ensure that the strain measurements will be received by the base station even under extreme conditions where normal communications are disrupted. This paper describes the architecture of the SENSKIN system and the development and testing of the first SENSKIN prototype sensor, the data acquisition system, and the communication system. Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/236/1/012100 SN - 1757-8981 VL - 236 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - GEN A1 - Cheilakou, E. A1 - Tsopelas, N. A1 - Anastasopoulos, A. A1 - Kourousis, D. A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Frankenstein, B. A1 - Amditis, A. A1 - Damigos, Y. A1 - Bouklas, C. T1 - Strain monitoring system for steel and concrete structures T2 - Procedia Structural Integrity N2 - The present work is part of a collaborative H2020 European funded research project called SENSKIN, that aims to improve Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) for transport infrastructure through the development of an innovative monitoring and management system for bridges based on a novel, inexpensive, skin-like sensor. The integrated SENSKIN technology will be implemented in the case of steel and concrete bridges, and tested, field-evaluated and benchmarked on actual bridge environment against a conventional health monitoring solution developed by Mistras Group Hellas. The main objective of the present work is to implement the autonomous, fully functional strain monitoring system based on commercially available off-the-shelf components, that will be used to accomplish direct comparison between the performance of the innovative SENSKIN sensors and the conventional strain sensors commonly used for structural monitoring of bridges. For this purpose, the mini Structural Monitoring System (mini SMS) of Physical Acoustics Corporation, a comprehensive data acquisition unit designed specifically for long-term unattended operation in outdoor environments, was selected. For the completion of the conventional system, appropriate foil-type strain sensors were selected, driven by special conditioners manufactured by Mistras Group. A comprehensive description of the strain monitoring system and its peripheral components is provided in this paper. For the evaluation of the integrated system’s performance and the effect of various parameters on the long-term behavior of sensors, several test steel pieces instrumented with different strain sensors configurations were prepared and tested in both laboratory and field ambient conditions. Furthermore, loading tests were performed aiming to validate the response of the system in monitoring the strains developed in steel beam elements subject to bending regimes. Representative results obtained from the above experimental tests have been included in this paper as well. KW - Structural health monitoring KW - strain sensors KW - strain gauges KW - bridges KW - steel and concrete structures Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prostr.2018.09.005 SN - 2452-3216 VL - 10 SP - 25 EP - 32 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Stabilization of positive charge on polytetrafluoroethylene electret films treated with titanium-tetrachloride vapor JF - Applied physics letters N2 - The surface of polytetrafluoroethylene films was treated with titanium-tetrachloride vapor. The treatment was carried out in a flow reactor by means of molecular-layer deposition, a method from the arsenal of chemical nanotechnology. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals that such a treatment results in considerable changes in the chemical composition at and near the surface of the fluoropolymer film. Both, defluorination and oxidation of the surface were observed. At the same time, samples treated with titanium tetrachloride show a significant enhancement in the thermal stability of the positive homocharge. The thermally stimulated surface-potential-decay curves were observed to shift to higher temperatures by more than 100 degrees C. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3565166 SN - 0003-6951 VL - 98 IS - 12 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kalbitz, Rene A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Taylor, D. M. T1 - Stability of polarization in organic ferroelectric metal-insulator-semiconductor structures JF - Applied physics letters N2 - Dielectric measurements have been carried out on all-organic metal-insulator-semiconductor structures with the ferroelectric polymer poly(vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene) as the gate insulator. It is shown that the polarization states remain stable after poling with accumulation and depletion voltage. However, negative charge trapped at the semiconductor-insulator interface during the depletion cycle masks the negative shift in flatband voltage expected during the sweep to accumulation voltages. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3543632 SN - 0003-6951 VL - 98 IS - 3 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Spectroscopic study of dielectric barrier discharges in cellular polypropylene ferroelectrets N2 - The transient light emission from the dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) in cellular polypropylene ferroelectrets subjected to high electric poling fields was spectroscopically measured. The spectrum shows strong emission from the second positive system of molecular nitrogen, N-2(C (3)Pi(u))-> N-2(B (3)Pi(g)), and the first negative system of N-2(+), N-2(+)(B (2)Sigma(+)(u))-> N-2(+)(X (2)Sigma(+)(g)), consistent with a DBD in air. When a dc voltage is applied stepwise to the ferroelectret film, light emission starts above a threshold, coinciding with the threshold voltage in obtaining piezoelectricity. From selected vibronic band strength ratios, the electric field in the discharge was determined and found to agree with Townsend breakdown. Y1 - 2007 UR - http://apl.aip.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2786597 ER - TY - INPR A1 - Hilczer, Börn A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Scott, James F. T1 - Special Issue of Ferroelectrics in Honor of S. B. Lang T2 - Ferroelectrics Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/00150193.2014.964099 SN - 0015-0193 SN - 1563-5112 VL - 472 IS - 1 SP - VII EP - VIII PB - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group CY - Abingdon ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Donval, Ariela A1 - Berkovic, Garry A1 - Yilmaz, Sükrü A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Brinker, Walter A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Spatial and thermal analysis of nonlinearity created by asymmetric charge injection Y1 - 1996 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Space-charge profiles with high densities in uniform and nonuniform polymer dielectrics Y1 - 1997 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Jingwen A1 - Rychkov, Dmitry A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Space-charge electret properties of polypropylene films with transcrystalline or spherulitic structures BT - a comparison of functionalities at interfaces JF - Journal of applied physics : AIP's archival journal for significant new results in applied physics / publ. by the American Institute of Physics N2 - Spherulite-related space-charge electret properties of polypropylene (PP) have been widely discussed in the past decades. In the present paper, a less-common crystalline structure in PP-transcrystalline PP-is studied regarding its electret behavior in comparison with the typical spherulitic morphology. Polarized light microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry were employed to characterize the crystallite types and crystallinities of transcrystalline and spherulitic PP. Their electret functionality is investigated by means of thermally stimulated discharge experiments, where the cross-over phenomenon is observed on transcrystalline PP films, whereas surface-potential saturation and undercharging on the surface occur on the spherulitic samples. Besides, an asymmetrical behavior of positive and negative surface-charge stabilities is found on PP with spherulites, the negatively charged spherulitic surfaces show a better charge stability. It is shown that PP electrets are very sensitive to changes in the microscopic crystalline structures and their interfaces as well as in the molecular conformations controlled through adjustments of the respective processing steps. In addition, surface and bulk nanocomposites of PP or low-density polyethylene with inorganic particles are included in the comparison. In view of recent developments in the areas of PP-based electret-fiber filters and cellular-foam ferroelectrets, the observed changes in the charge-storage properties may have particular relevance, as the required film, fiber, or foam processing might significantly modify crystalline morphologies and nano-scale interfaces in PP electrets. Limitations in the charge-storage capabilities of interface structures may also be of interest in the context of high-voltage electrical-insulation materials where reduced space-charge accumulation and slightly increased charge transport can be advantageous. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0039867 SN - 0021-8979 SN - 1089-7550 VL - 129 IS - 6 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - INPR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Sidney Lang - his collaboration with the University of Potsdam T2 - Ferroelectrics Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/00150193.2014.967090 SN - 0015-0193 SN - 1563-5112 VL - 472 IS - 1 SP - 5 EP - 5 PB - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group CY - Abingdon ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rollik, Denis A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Separate contributions to the pyroelectricity in polyvinylidene fluoride from the amorphous and crystalline phases as well as their interfaces Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sborikas, Martynas A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Jenninger, Werner A1 - Lovera, Deliani T1 - Screen printing for producing ferroelectret systems with polymer-electret films and well-defined cavities JF - Applied physics : A, Materials science & processing N2 - We report a process for preparing polymer ferroelectrets by means of screen printing-a technology that is widely used for the two-dimensional patterning of printed layers. In order to produce polymer-film systems with cavities that are suitable for bipolar electric charging, a screen-printing paste is deposited through a screen with a pre-designed pattern onto the surface of a polymer electret film. Another such polymer film is placed on top of the printed pattern, and well-defined cavities are formed in-between. During heating and curing, the polymer films are tightly bonded to the patterned paste layer so that a stable three-layer system is obtained. In the present work, polycarbonate (PC) films have been employed as electret layers. Screen printing, curing and charging led to PC ferroelectret systems with a piezoelectric d (33) coefficient of about 28 pC/N that is stable up to 100 C-a similar to. Due to the rather soft patterned layer, d (33) strongly decreases already for static pressures of tens of kPa. The results demonstrate the suitability of screen printing for the preparation of ferroelectret systems. Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-013-7998-3 SN - 0947-8396 SN - 1432-0630 VL - 114 IS - 2 SP - 515 EP - 520 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Ren, W. A1 - Yilmaz, Sükrü A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Relaxation processes in poled nonlinear optical polymers Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gulyakova, Anna A. A1 - Gorokhovatsky, Yuri A. A1 - frübing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Relaxation Processes Determining the Electret Stability of High-Impact Polystyrene/Titanium-Dioxide Composite Films JF - IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation N2 - The influence of relaxation processes on the thermal electret stability of high-impact polystyrene (HIPS) free-standing films filled with titanium dioxide (TiO2) of the rutile modification are investigated by means of a combination of dielectric methods (dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS), thermally stimulated depolarization current (TSDC) and thermally stimulated surface-potential decay (TSSPD)), supplemented by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Films with 2, 4, 6 and 8 vol.% TiO2 are compared to each other and to non-filled samples. Filling HIPS with up to 8 vol.% of TiO2 enhances the elastic modulus below the glass transition and increases the thermal electret stability above the glass transition without significantly increasing the DC conductivity. The improvement of the electret stability is caused by the build-up of an interface polarization which decays only gradually if the glass transition is exceeded. Two kinds of Arrhenius processes are considered in order to explain the decay of the composite-polymer electrets: (1) charge release from chemical traps located at the phenyl rings of the polymer chain with an activation energy of E-a = 1.1 eV after passing the glass transition at about 100 degrees C and (2) charge release from traps formed by the TiO2 particles with E-a = 2.4 eV at temperatures above 130 degrees C. Finally, the activation energies are discussed with respect to their significance. KW - High-impact polystyrene KW - titanium dioxide KW - electret stability KW - dielectric relaxation Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2017.006587 SN - 1070-9878 SN - 1558-4135 VL - 24 SP - 2541 EP - 2548 PB - Inst. of Electr. and Electronics Engineers CY - Piscataway ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Kremmer, Alexander A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Spanoudaki, Anna A1 - Pissis, Polycarpos T1 - Relaxation processes at the glass transition in polyamide 11: From rigidity to viscoelasticity JF - The journal of chemical physics : bridges a gap between journals of physics and journals of chemistr N2 - Relaxation processes associated with the glass transition in nonferroelectric and ferroelectric polyamide (PA) 11 are investigated by means of differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis, and dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS) in order to obtain information about the molecular mobility within the amorphous phase. In particular, the effects of melt quenching, cold drawing, and annealing just below the melting region are studied with respect to potential possibilities and limitations for improving the piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties of PA 11. A relaxation map is obtained from DRS that shows especially the crossover region where the cooperative alpha relaxation and the local beta relaxation merge into a single high-temperature process. No fundamental difference between quenched, cold-drawn, and annealed films is found, though in the cold-drawn (ferroelectric) film the alpha relaxation is suppressed and slowed down, but it is at least partly recovered by subsequent annealing. It is concluded that there exists an amorphous phase in all structures, even in the cold-drawn film. The amorphous phase can be more rigid or more viscoelastic depending on preparation. Cold drawing not only leads to crystallization in a ferroelectric form but also to higher rigidity of the remaining amorphous phase. Annealing just below the melting region after cold drawing causes a stronger phase separation between the crystalline phase and a more viscoelastic amorphous phase. Y1 - 2006 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2360266 SN - 0021-9606 VL - 125 IS - 12 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Melville ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Kremmer, Alexander A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Spannoudaki, Anna A1 - Pissis, Polycarpos T1 - Relaxation processes at the glass transition in polyamide 11 : From rigidity to viscoelasticity Y1 - 2006 UR - http://jcp.aip.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2360266 SN - 0021-9606 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Gulyakova, Anna A. A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Relaxation processes and structural transitions in poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene-chlorofluoroethylene) relaxor-ferroelectric terpolymers as seen in dielectric spectroscopy JF - IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation N2 - Dielectric relaxation processes and structural transitions in Poly(vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene-chlorofluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE-CFE)) terpolymer films with two different monomer compositions were investigated in comparison with Poly(vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) copolymer films as reference material. Differential Scanning Calorimetry was employed to assess annealing effects on phase transitions and crystalline structure, while relaxation processes were investigated by means of Dielectric Relaxation Spectroscopy, the results of which indicate the existence of two separate dispersion regions, denoted as processes A and B, respectively. Process A appears at a certain temperature independent of frequency, but is strongly influenced by the crystallisation temperature and the CFE content, while peak B shows typical features of a relaxation process and is less influenced by crystallisation temperature and CFE content. Furthermore, peak B is related to the glass transition which is more pronounced in the terpolymer than in P(VDF-TrFE). A closer analysis indicates that the addition of CFE and thermal annealing gradually shift the ferro-to-paraelectric transition in P(VDF-TrFE) to lower temperatures, while the phase transition is transformed more and more into a relaxation. KW - P(VDF-TrFE-CFE) terpolymer KW - relaxor-ferroelectric polymer KW - dielectric relaxation spectroscopy KW - Curie transition KW - differential scanning calorimetry Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2018.007440 SN - 1070-9878 SN - 1558-4135 VL - 25 IS - 6 SP - 2229 EP - 2235 PB - Institut of Electrical and Electronics Engineers CY - Piscataway ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Krüger, Harald A1 - Goering, H. A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Relaxation behaviour of thermoplastic polyurethanes with covalently attached nitroaniline dipoles Y1 - 2002 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Stracke, A. A1 - Bayer, A. A1 - Zimmermann, S. A1 - Wendorff, Joachim Heinz A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Relaxation behaviour of electrically induced polar orientation and of optically induced non-polar orientation in an azo-chromophore side group polymer Y1 - 1999 SN - 0022-3727 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Leal Ferreira, G. F. A1 - Faria, Roberto M. T1 - Recent developments in selected areas of the research initiated or significantly advanced by Bernhard Gross Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rollik, Denis A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Pyroelectrical study of the polarization contributions from the amorphous and crystalline phases as well as from their interface in poly(vinylidene fluoride) Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Yilmaz, Sükrü A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Pyroelectrical investigation of nonlinear optical polymers with uniform or patterned dipole orientation Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Yilmaz, Sükrü A1 - Dinger, Claudia A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Michelotti, F. A1 - Toussaere, E. A1 - Levenson, R. A1 - Liang, J. A1 - Zyss, Joseph T1 - Pyroelectric, dielectric and electro-optical investigation of crosslinking in Red Acid Magly Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Frübing, Peter A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Buchsteiner, Alexandra A1 - Neumann, Werner A1 - Brehmer, Ludwig A1 - Dietel, Reinhard T1 - Pyroelectric properties and dielectric hysteresis of a poly(vinylalcohol) with azobenzene alkoxy side chains Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Donval, Ariela A1 - Berkovic, Garry A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Pyroelectric depth profiling of the optical nonlinearity caused by charge injection Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - THES A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Präparation und Untersuchung von Festkörperschichten für Sensorik und Photonik : eine Zusammenstellung von Veröffentlichungen Y1 - 1992 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Seiß, Martin A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Prepariation and assessment of piezo- and pyroelectric poly- (vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) copolymer films Y1 - 2001 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Preparation and pyroelectrical investigation of bimorph polymer layers Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Xia, Zhongfu A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Pucher, Andreas T1 - Preliminary study of multi-layer space-charge electrets with piezoelectric properties from porous and non- porous Teflon films Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Görne, Thomas A1 - Pucher, Andreas A1 - Weinhold, Till A1 - Seiß, Martin A1 - Xia, Zhongfu A1 - Wedel, Armin A1 - Danz, Rudi T1 - Porous polytetrafluoroethylene space-charge electrets for piezoelectrical applications Y1 - 2000 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Weinhold, Till A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Seiß, Martin A1 - Görne, Thomas A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Porous polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) single-film space-charge electrets with high piezoelectric coefficients Y1 - 2000 SN - 0537-9989 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fang, Peng A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Zirkel, Larissa T1 - Polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) ferroelectrets : cellular structure, piezoelectricity and thermal stability N2 - Cellular polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) ferroelectrets are useful as soft and flexible electromechanical transducer materials. Improved cellular PEN foams are prepared by means of a "voiding + inflation + stretching" process and investigated with respect to their structure and their applications-relevant properties. It is found that most of the cellular voids have heights below 8 mu m. The polymer walls do not allow sufficient gas exchange between the voids and the ambient atmosphere, when the cellular films are exposed to atmospheric pressures between a millibar and a few bars. As expected for ferroelectrets, a threshold voltage for charging is observed: A reasonable piezoelectric coefficient d(33) is only found when the charging voltage is higher than 4 kV. Furthermore, d(33) increases with charging voltage and reaches saturation at approximately 8 kV. Annealing after charging or charging at elevated temperatures may enhance the thermal stability of the PEN ferroelectrets. The d(33) of properly annealed samples is stable up to the respective annealing temperatures, but the annealing process reduces the piezoelectric activity of charged ferroelectret films to some extent. Samples charged at suitable elevated temperatures show much better thermal stability than those charged at room temperature, but the charging temperature should be limited to values below the material's glass-transition temperature T-g. Furthermore, the relevant elastic modulus c(33) of PEN ferroelectrets may decrease upon thermal treatment. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/servlet/opac?punumber=94 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2010.5539678 SN - 1070-9878 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Poling behavior and optical absorption of partially dehydrofluorinated and uniaxially stretched polyvinylidene fluoride N2 - Polyvinylidene fluoride was dissolved together with solid sodium hydroxide as catalyst in a dimethylsulfoxide/ acetone mixture and moderately dehydrofluorinated. The dehydrofluorination leads to a partial degradation of the fluorohydrocarbons, and in particular to main-chain scission and to formation of carbon double or triple bonds. This enhances the absorption at UV-vis frequencies. The degradation process also generates a large amount of excess charges in the polymer, which influence the electrical polarization behavior of the dehydrofluorinated polymer. Uniaxial stretching of moderately dehydrofluorinated polyvinylidene fluoride leads to films in a polar phase. Dipole polarization in the degraded and stretched films is demonstrated by means of switching experiments Y1 - 2006 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/00150190600694761 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sun, Zhuanlan A1 - Zhang, Xiaoqing A1 - Xia, Zhongfu A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Zeng, Changchun A1 - Zhang, Chuck A1 - Wang, Ben T1 - Polarization and piezoelectricity in polymer films with artificial void structure JF - Applied physics : A, Materials science & processing N2 - Laminated polymer-film systems with well-defined void structures were prepared from fluoroethylenepropylene (FEP) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) layers. First the PTFE films were patterned and then fusion-bonded with the FEP films. The laminates were subjected to either corona or contact charging in order to obtain the desired piezoelectricity. The build-up of the "macro-dipoles" in the laminated films was studied by recording the electric hysteresis loops. The resulting electro-mechanical properties were investigated by means of dielectric resonance spectroscopy (DRS) and direct measurements of the stress-strain relationship. Moreover, the thermal stability of the piezoelectric d (33) coefficient was investigated at elevated temperatures and via thermally stimulated discharge (TSD) current measurements in short circuit. For 150 mu m thick laminated films, consisting of one 25 mu m thick PTFE layer, two 12.5 mu m thick FEP layers, and a void of 100 mu m height, the critical voltage necessary for the build-up of the "macro-dipoles" in the inner voids was approximately 1400 V, which agrees with the value calculated from the Paschen Law. A quasi-static piezoelectric d (33) coefficient up to 300 pC/N was observed after corona charging. The mechanical properties of the film systems are highly anisotropic. At room temperature, the Young's moduli of the laminated film system are around 0.37 MPa in the thickness direction and 274 MPa in the lateral direction, respectively. Using these values, the theoretical shape anisotropy ratio of the void was calculated, which agrees well with experimental observation. Compared with films that do not exhibit structural regularity, the laminates showed improved thermal stability of the d (33) coefficients. The thermal stability of d (33) can be further improved by pre-aging. E.g., the reduction of the d (33) value in the sample pre-aged at 150A degrees C for 5 h was less than 5% after annealing for 30 h at a temperature of 90A degrees C. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-011-6481-2 SN - 0947-8396 VL - 105 IS - 1 SP - 197 EP - 205 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Polarization and Hysteresis in Tubular-Channel Fluoroethylenepropylene-Copolymer Ferroelectrets JF - Ferroelectrics N2 - Polarization-vs.-applied-voltage hysteresis curves are recorded on tubular-channel fluoroethylene-propylene (FEP) copolymer ferroelectrets by means of a modified Sawyer-Tower circuit. Dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) inside the cavities are triggered when the applied voltage is sufficiently high. During the DBDs, the cavities become man-made macroscopic dipoles which build up an effective polarization in the ferroelectret. Therefore, a phenomenological hysteresis curve is observed. From the hysteresis loop, the remanent polarization and the coercive field can be determined. Furthermore, the polarization can be related to the respective piezoelectric coefficient of the ferroelectret. The proposed method is easy to implement and is useful for characterization, further development and optimization of ferro- or piezoelectrets. KW - Ferroelectrets KW - piezoelectrets KW - tubular-channel polymer systems KW - dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) KW - fluoroethylenepropylene (FEP) copolymer KW - piezoelectricity-polarization relation Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/00150193.2014.964603 SN - 0015-0193 SN - 1563-5112 VL - 472 IS - 1 SP - 100 EP - 109 PB - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group CY - Abingdon ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Xia, Zhongfu A1 - Weinhold, Till A1 - Pucher, Andreas A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectricity of porous polytetrafluoroethylene single- and multiple-film electrets containing high charge densities of both polarities Y1 - 2000 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury A1 - Aquino, C. V. A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectricity of a single bubble formed by two oppositely charged Teflon-FEP films Y1 - 2006 SN - 1-4244-0547-5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Bergweiler, Steffen A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Pucher, Andreas A1 - Tuncer, Enis A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectric two-layer stacks of cellular polypropylene ferroelectrets : transducer response at audio and ultrasound frequencies N2 - Piezoelectric cellular polypropylene films, so-called ferroelectrets, are assembled in a stack with two active transducer layers. The stack is characterized with respect to its linear and quadratic response in a frequency range from 1 kHz to 80 kHz. A relatively smooth frequency response in the sound-pressure level is found for the individual layers as well as for both layers driven in phase. The piezoelectric response of the two-layer stack is twice the response of an individual layer over a rather broad frequency range. Furthermore, the influence of the preparation conditions on the resonance frequency and the effect of the quadratic distortion on the radiated sound are investigated both for the individual transducer films in the stack and for the stack system as a whole Y1 - 2005 SN - 0885-3010 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectric polyethylene terephthalate (PETP) foams : specifically designed and prepared ferroelectret films Y1 - 2005 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fang, Peng A1 - Hollaender, Lars A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectric d(33) coefficients in foamed and layered polymer piezoelectrets from dynamic mechano-electrical experiments, electro-mechanical resonance spectroscopy and acoustic-transducer measurements JF - Measurement science and technology N2 - Piezoelectrets are novel transducer materials which can be widely applied in sensors and actuators. Here, three techniques for determining piezoelectric d(33) coefficients of piezoelectrets are reviewed and compared. Two types of piezoelectrets, polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) polymer-foam piezoelectrets and fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP) copolymer-layer piezoelectrets, have been prepared and measured by means of dynamic, resonance, and acoustical methods. The dynamic measurements show that the d(33) coefficient of PEN-foam samples clearly decreases with increasing stress, but 80% of the initial d(33) can be retained after 1800 cycles of a continuous dynamic measurement in a mechanical fatigue test. The resonance measurements demonstrate that both PEN-foam and FEP-layer samples exhibit clear electro-mechanical resonances. PEN-foam samples show elastic moduli in the range from 1 to 12 MPa and d(33) values up to 500 pC N-1, while FEP-layer samples show homogeneous elastic moduli of about 0.3 MPa and d(33) values of about 280 pC N-1. The acoustical measurements reveal that both PEN-foam and FEP-layer samples exhibit stable frequency responses in the range from 5.7 to 20 kHz. In addition, d(33) coefficients obtained with different experimental methods are in good agreement with each other, which confirms the reliability of all three techniques. KW - piezoelectret KW - ferroelectret KW - dielectric resonance spectroscopy KW - piezoelectric measurements KW - acoustic-transducer materials KW - polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) KW - fluorinated ethylene-propylene copolymer (FEP) Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0957-0233/23/3/035604 SN - 0957-0233 VL - 23 IS - 3 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhong-Fu, X. A1 - Shan-Shan, M. A1 - Jia-Qian, Z. A1 - Xun-Lin, Q. A1 - Ye-Wen, Z. A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang T1 - Piezoelectric activity and its stability of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) films Y1 - 2003 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Basso, Heitor Cury A1 - Altafim, Ruy Alberto Pisani A1 - Lima, L. A1 - de Aquino, C. V. A1 - Goncalves Neto, Luiz A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezoelectrets from thermo-formed bubble structures of fluoropolymer-electret films N2 - The acetone extracts of the root bark and stem bark of Erythrina sacleuxii showed antiplasmodial activities against the chloroquine-sensitive (D6) and chloroquine-resistant (W2) strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Chromatographic separation of the acetone extract of the root bark afforded a new isoflavone, 7-hydroxy-4 -methoxy-3'- prenylisoflavone (trivial name 5-deoxy-3' - prenylbiochanin A) along with known isoflavonoids as the antiplasmodial principles. Flavonoids and isoflavonoids isolated from the stem bark of E. sucleuxii were also tested and showed antiplasmodial activities. The structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic evidence. Y1 - 2006 UR - http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/servlet/opac?punumber=94 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2006.247822 SN - 1070-9878 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Künstler, Wolfgang A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Piezo-, pyro- and ferroelectricity in poly (vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) copolymer films N2 - Thin films of poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) P(VDF-HFP) show significant electroactive properties, such as piezoelectricity, pyroelectricity and electrostriction. Suitable polar P(VDF-HFP) copolymer films can be prepared by melt-pressing or solution-casting. Dipolar orientation causes the macroscopic polarization and thus also the symmetry breaking necessary for electroactive properties. We discuss the polarization build-up in thin, stretched and non-stretched, films of P(VDF-HFP) copolymer with a HFP content of 15%. Poling currents measured in-situ during electric poling are analyzed and the polarization is calculated. Suitable electric poling leads to hysteresis phenomena of the polarization as a function of the electric field as well as to significant polarization during switching experiments. Our results indicate dipolar orientation also in non-stretched P(VDF-HFP) films Y1 - 2004 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Wintler, H. J. T1 - Physical aging after photo-induced or thermally assisted poling for enhancing the stability of polymeric dipole glasses Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Gonzalez, Francisco Camacho A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Santos, Lucas F. A1 - Faria, Roberto M. T1 - Phototstimulated discharge of corona and electron-beam charged electret polymers Y1 - 2002 SN - 0-7803-7560-2 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Camacho González, Francisco A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Photostimulated discharge in electret polymers : an alternative approach for investigating deep traps N2 - The stability of space charge in electrets such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyethylene terephthalate (PETP) and polypropylene (PP) under ultraviolet irradiation has been investigated using photostimulated discharge spectroscopy. While only weak discharge currents were observed in PTFE coated with semitransparent gold electrodes, up to 15 pA/cm(2) were found in PETP around the UV absorption edge near 310 nm. Space charge profiles obtained with the piezoelectrically generated pressure step method indicate that near-surface charges were almost completely removed. In PP foam, recent findings of a UV-reduced d(33) coefficient were confirmed for exposure times of up to 3.5 h, and a discharge peak at 200 urn could be assigned to the charges stored on the surfaces of the voids. The unique morphology and the (quasi-) piezoelectric properties of cellular PP make it a role model for the future investigation of charge storage in electrets Y1 - 2004 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gonzalez, Francisco Camacho A1 - Mellinger, Axel A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Santos, Lucas F. A1 - Faria, Roberto M. T1 - Photo-stimulated discharge of highly insulating polymers (PTFE and PETP) Y1 - 2002 SN - 0-7803-7502-5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Brinker, Walter A1 - Yilmaz, Sükrü A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Phase-shift interference microscope for the investigation of dipoleorientation distributions Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Qiu, X. L. A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Zhang, X. Q. A1 - Hillenbrand, J. A1 - Xia, Zhongfu A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Sessler, G. M. T1 - Penetration of sulfur hexafluoride into cellular polypropylene films and its effect on the electric charging and electromechanical response of ferroelectrets N2 - Cellular polypropylene (PP) films were treated with sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) gas in order to study the SF6 penetration behaviour and optimize the electric charging conditions. There were differences in the penetration of SF6 for different cellular PP materials, depending on the microscopic properties, which manifest themselves in the voided structure as well as in the mechanical stiffnesses of the cellular films. The penetration of SF6 after long-term pressure treatment is confirmed in strongly inflated cellular PP films with a low mechanical stiffness of about 1 MPa. No SF6 penetration occurs for slightly inflated cellular PP films with smaller void sizes and higher mechanical stiffnesses of around 5.8 MPa. The observed thickness variations, the higher charging fields during corona charging because of SF6 penetration and the SF6 environment, as well as the resulting electromechanical properties are discussed Y1 - 2005 SN - 0022-3727 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Kacprzyk, Ryszard T1 - Paul Böning - early electret researcher in Shanghai and Wroclaw (1922-1945) JF - IEEE transactions on dielectrics and electrical insulation N2 - The scientific career and the research activities of Paul Boening, especially during his tenures at Tongji University in Shanghai (Woosung Campus, 1922-1936) and the Technical University of Wroclaw (TH Breslau, 1936-1945), are briefly reviewed. In particular, Boening's pioneering investigations in the area of electrets and space charge in dielectrics are emphasized. We attempt to shed some light on the significant achievements of a virtually unknown contributor to the early history of electrets and of space-charge research and high-voltage engineering, during the 1920s and 1930s. It should be noted that dielectrics research was a truly international endeavor already at that time. KW - dielectrics KW - electrets KW - electrostatic KW - experiments KW - (high-)voltage measurements KW - space charge Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/TDEI.2022.3168372 SN - 1070-9878 SN - 1558-4135 VL - 29 IS - 3 SP - 853 EP - 858 PB - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers CY - New York, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Hesse, J. A1 - Wegener, T. A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Patterned ferro-, pyro- and piezoelectricity in poly(vinylindene fluoride) by means of a laser-induced irreversible beta to alpha phase transformation [Erratum] Y1 - 2002 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Hesse, J. A1 - Wegener, T. A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Patterned ferro-, pyro- and piezoelectricity in poly(vinylindene fluoride) by means of a laser-induced irreversible beta to alpha phase transformation Y1 - 2002 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Origin of the mid-temperature transition in vinylidenefluoride-based ferro-, pyro- and piezoelectric homo-, co- and ter-polymers JF - Materials Research Express N2 - The existence of an intermediate transition between the glass and the Curie/melting temperatures in Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and some of its co- and ter-polymers has been reported by several authors. In spite (or because?) of various different explanations in the literature, the origins of the transition are still not clear. Here, we try to understand the extra transition in more detail and study it with thermal and dielectric methods on PVDF, on its co-polymers with trifluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE)) and tetrafluoroethylene (P(VDF-TFE)), and on its ter-polymer with trifluoroethylene and chlorofluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE-CFE). Based on interpretations from the literature and our experimental studies, we propose the new hypothesis that the intermediate transition should have several interrelated origins. Especially since the relevant range is not far above room temperature, better understanding and control of their properties may also have practical implications for the use of the respective polymer materials in devices. KW - mid-temperature transition KW - vinylidenefluoride (VDF)-based polymers KW - Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) KW - Dielectric Relaxation Spectroscopy (DRS) KW - ferroelectric polymers KW - pyroelectric polymers KW - piezoelectric polymers Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1591/ab842c SN - 2053-1591 VL - 7 PB - IOP Publ. CY - Bristol ER - TY - GEN A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Origin of the mid-temperature transition in vinylidenefluoride-based ferro-, pyro- and piezoelectric homo-, co- and ter-polymers T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - The existence of an intermediate transition between the glass and the Curie/melting temperatures in Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and some of its co- and ter-polymers has been reported by several authors. In spite (or because?) of various different explanations in the literature, the origins of the transition are still not clear. Here, we try to understand the extra transition in more detail and study it with thermal and dielectric methods on PVDF, on its co-polymers with trifluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE)) and tetrafluoroethylene (P(VDF-TFE)), and on its ter-polymer with trifluoroethylene and chlorofluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE-CFE). Based on interpretations from the literature and our experimental studies, we propose the new hypothesis that the intermediate transition should have several interrelated origins. Especially since the relevant range is not far above room temperature, better understanding and control of their properties may also have practical implications for the use of the respective polymer materials in devices. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 977 KW - mid-temperature transition KW - vinylidenefluoride (VDF)-based polymers KW - Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) KW - Dielectric Relaxation Spectroscopy (DRS) KW - ferroelectric polymers KW - pyroelectric polymers KW - piezoelectric polymers Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-474672 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 977 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tuncer, Enis A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Frubing, Peter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Origin of temperature dependent conductivity of alpha-polyvinylidene fluoride N2 - The conductivity of alpha-polyvinylidene fluoride is obtained from dielectric measurements performed in the frequency domain at several temperatures. At temperatures above the glass-transition, the conductivity can be interpreted as an ionic conductivity, which confirms earlier results reported in the literature. Our investigation shows that the observed ionic conductivity is closely related to the amorphous phase of the polymer. (C) 2005 American Institute of Physics Y1 - 2005 SN - 0021-9606 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Voronina, Olena A1 - Zirkel, Larissa A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Optimized preparation of elastically soft, highly piezoelectric, cellular ferroelectrets from nonvoided poly(ethylene terephthalate) films N2 - Electrically charged cellular polymer films can exhibit very high piezoelectric activity and are therefore more and more often employed in advanced electromechanical and electro-acoustical transducers. In this paper, we report an optimized sequence of steps for preparing such ferroelectrets from commercial nonvoided ploy(ethylene terephthalate) (PETP) films by means of foaming with CO2 biaxial mechanical stretching, controlled void inflation, and bipolar electric charging. The nonvoid PETP films foamed with supercritical CO2 at a suitably high pressure and subsequently annealed for stabilization. The cellular foam structure was further optimized by means of well controlled biaxial stretching in a commercial stretcher and sometimes subsequent inflamation in a pressure chamber. Bipolar electric charging of the internal voids was achieved through the application of high electric fields in an SF0 atmosphere. The new optimized PETP ferroelectric exhibit quite large piezoelectric coefficients up to almost 500 pCN(-1), for which unusually low elastic stiffness of only around 0.3 MPa are essential. The PETP foam ferroelectrics posses unclamped thickenss-extension resonance frequences between approximately 120 and 250 kHz, and are thus highly suitable for several established as well as novel ultrasonic-transductant applications. Y1 - 2007 UR - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adfm.200600162/pdf U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.200600162 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Lang, Sidney B. T1 - Obituaries - Dilip Kumar Das-Gupta Y1 - 2002 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Saarimäki, Eetta A1 - Paajanen, Mika A1 - Savijärvi, Ann-Mari A1 - Minkkinen, Hannu A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Voronina, Olena A1 - Schulze, Robert A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Novel heat durable electromechanical film : processing for electromechanical and electret applications N2 - New ferroelectrets were developed on the basis of foams from cyclo-olefin polymers and copolymers. The results obtained on the cyclo-olefin polymer foam demonstrate a significant improvement of the service temperature for ferroelectret transducer materials. Suitable compounding and preparation led to cyclo-olefin ferroelectrets with an electromechanical activity of around 15 pC/N, which is thermally stable at least up to 110 degrees C. The properties in sensor and actuator applications are strongly dependent on the processing parameters related to film-making, sensor and actuator preparation, gas content and electric charging. The processing window for the film stretching was very narrow compared to the earlier developed polypropylene ferroelectrets. The film porosity, softness and thus the electromechanical activity are adjusted by gas-diffusion expansion. The activity of the electromechanically operating sensors and actuators was increased by stacking several layers of cellular cyclo-olefin film. For applications such as flat loudspeakers, the foamed films are tuned by tensioning them on a support frame. Correct tensioning was essential also for reducing the distortion levels. Y1 - 2006 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Nonlinear optical polymer electrets : current practice Y1 - 1996 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Nonlinear optical polymer electrets Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Nonlinear optical polymer electrets Y1 - 1996 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Raman Venkatesan, Thulasinath A1 - Smykalla, David A1 - Ploss, Bernd A1 - Wübbenhorst, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Non-linear dielectric spectroscopy for detecting and evaluating structure-property relations in a P(VDF-TrFE-CFE) relaxor-ferroelectric terpolymer JF - Applied physics : A, Materials science & processing N2 - Non-linear dielectric spectroscopy (NLDS) is employed as an effective tool to study relaxation processes and phase transitions of a poly(vinylidenefluoride-trifluoroethylene-chlorofluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE-CFE)) relaxor-ferroelectric (R-F) terpolymer in detail. Measurements of the non-linear dielectric permittivity epsilon 2 ' reveal peaks at 30 and 80 degrees C that cannot be identified in conventional dielectric spectroscopy. By combining the results from NLDS experiments with those from other techniques such as thermally stimulated depolarization and dielectric-hysteresis studies, it is possible to explain the processes behind the additional peaks. The former peak, which is associated with the mid-temperature transition, is found in all other vinylidene fluoride-based polymers and may help to understand the non-zero epsilon 2 ' values that are detected on the paraelectric phase of the terpolymer. The latter peak can also be observed during cooling of P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer samples at 100 degrees C and is due to conduction and space-charge polarization as a result of the accumulation of real charges at the electrode-sample interface. KW - Non-linear dielectric spectroscopy KW - P(VDF-TrFE-CFE) KW - Relaxor-ferroelectric polymer KW - Dielectric hysteresis KW - Curie-transition KW - Mid-temperature transition Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-021-04876-0 SN - 0947-8396 SN - 1432-0630 VL - 127 IS - 10 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ; Heidelberg ; New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kofod, Guggi A1 - Stoyanov, Hristiyan A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Multilayer coaxial fiber dielectric elastomers for actuation and sensing JF - Applied physics : A, Materials science & processing N2 - A simple dip-coating technique was employed to manufacture coaxial actuators with multiple layers of alternating dielectric and conducting layers. A thin rubber string was coated with an electrode-insulator-electrode structure, giving rise to a thin, fiber-like actuator with coaxial geometry. The process was repeated to achieve a compact multilayer actuator with up to three coaxial dielectric layers. Mechanical and electromechanical characterization of the actuators is presented, showing actuation strains up to 8% and proper voltage-thickness scaling behavior. Also presented is a capacitance vs. extension plot, demonstrating that these structures can be used for compact and accurate capacitive strain sensing. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-010-6066-5 SN - 0947-8396 SN - 1432-0630 VL - 102 IS - 3 SP - 577 EP - 581 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bauer-Gogonea, Simona A1 - Bauer, Siegfried A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Monomorphs, bimorphs and multimorphs from polar polymer electrets Y1 - 1999 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Li, Changsheng A1 - Chen, Gangjin A1 - Qiu, Xunlin A1 - Gao, Meng A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Modified polytetrafluoroethylene BT - towards easy-to-process space-charge electret materials JF - Applied physics express : APEX N2 - Three poly(tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene-vinylidenefluoride) (TFE-HFP-VDF or THV) terpolymers (Dyneon (R)) with different monomer ratios are investigated to demonstrate the concept of "modified" PTFE for space-charge electrets. HFP and VDF monomers distort the highly ordered PTFE molecules, which effectively enhances processability and adversely affects space-charge storage. Particularly, VDF component renders the material polar and probably also more conductive, partially undermining the space-charge-storage capabilities of PTFE. Nevertheless, the terpolymer THV815 with a TFE/HFP/VDF wt% ratio of 76.1/10.9/13 combines easy processability and relatively good space-charge stability. Our results shed light on novel concepts for space-charge electret materials with enhanced processing properties and reasonable charge-storage capabilities. Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.7567/1882-0786/ab5b23 SN - 1882-0778 SN - 1882-0786 VL - 13 IS - 1 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tuncer, Enis A1 - Wegener, Michael A1 - Gerhard, Reimund T1 - Modeling electro-mechanical properties of layered electrets : application of the finite-element method N2 - We present calculations on the deformation of two- and three-layer electret systems. The electrical field is coupled with the stress-strain equations by means of the Maxwell stress tensor. In the simulations, two-phase systems are considered, and intrinsic relative dielectric permittivity and Young's modulus of the phases are altered. The numerically calculated electro-mechanical activity is compared to an analytical expression. Simulations are performed on two- and three-layer systems. Various parameters in the model are systematically varied and their influence on the resulting piezoelectricity is estimated. In three-layer systems with bipolar charge, the piezoelectric coefficients exhibit a strong dependence on the elastic moduli of the phases. However, with mono-polar charge, there is no significant piezoelectric effect. A two-dimensional simulation illustrated that higher piezoelectric coefficients can be obtained for non-uniform surface charges and low Poisson's ratio of phases. Irregular structures considered exhibit low piezoelectric activity compared to two-layer structures. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved Y1 - 2005 SN - 0304-3886 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wirges, Werner A1 - Przyrembel, G. A1 - Brinker, Walter A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Klemberg-Sapieha, J. A1 - Martinu, L. A1 - Poitras, D. A1 - Wertheimer, M. R. T1 - Metallised viscoelastic control layers for light-valve projection displays Y1 - 1995 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gerhard, Reimund A1 - Mahler, G. T1 - Light-valve projection displays - an introduction Y1 - 1995 ER -