Space Charge Accumulation in Polytetrafluoroethylene at Different Temperatures

A satellite operates in a harsh environment including high vacuum, thermal cycle, and radiations. The temperature of the insulator is influenced by the satellite position in the orbit, and would vary in a wide range, such as from -100 oC to 100 oC. Consequently, the surface or internal charging and discharging behaviour of insulator would be very different during the operation of a satellite. This paper investigates the space charge accumulation properties in polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) at different temperatures at high electric fields by a bipolar charge transport (BCT) model. The BCT model consists of carrier transfers at the interfaces between electrodes and insulating materials, carrier conductions at shallow traps, charge trapping-detrapping and charge recombination processes. The…