Dielectric and conductive spectra of the composite of barium titanate and LiClO/sub 4/-doped polyethylene oxide

Dielectric and conductive frequency spectra in a 10 mHz-10 GHz range have been measured for a composite consisting of barium titanate (BaTiO/sub 3/) inclusions dispersed in a LiClO/sub 4/-doped polyethylene oxide (Li-PEO) matrix with volume fraction /spl Phi/ = 0-40%. Pure Li-PEO behaves as a dielectric showing a segmental-mode dielectric relaxation at high frequencies (dielectric regime) and transfers to an ionic conductor below 10 MHz (conductive regime). BaTiO/sub 3/ is a ferroelectric having a very large dielectric permittivity and spontaneous polarization. The introduction of BaTiO/sub 3/ into Li-PEO caused a rapid increase in permittivity in the dielectric regime. In the conductive regime, the composite exhibited an additional relaxation at a frequency related to the ratio of DC conductivity of Li-PEO and the permittivity of BaTiO/sub 3/. This relaxation was attributed to accumulation of dissociated Li/sup +/ and ClO4/sup o/ns at the inclusion/matrix interface which resulted in an increase of effective permittivity and a decrease of effective conductivity. Quantitative analyses based on mixing laws for the two-phase spherical dispersion system have shown that the Bruggeman equation accurately predicted the /spl Phi/-dependence of the effective permittivity over the entire frequency range. Regarding the effective conductivity, it predicted values lower than the observed. We attributed this discrepancy to the spontaneous polarization of BaTiO/sub 3/, which induced ion trapping to reduce the DC conductivity of Li-PEO matrix.     

Numerical analysis of electromagnetic scattering from 3D dielectric objects using the Yasuura method

In order to calculate 3D electromagnetic scattering problems by dielectric objects which we need to solve a large‐size simultaneous linear equation, we present a rapid algorithm on the Yasuura method where we accelerate the convergence rate of solution by using an array of multipoles as well as a conventional multipole. As a result, we can obtain the radar cross sections of dielectric objects in the optical wave region over a relatively wide frequency range and a TDG pulse response. Furtherrmore, we analyze the scattering data about dielectric objects by using the pulse responses cut by an appropriate window function in the time domain and clarify the scattering processes on dielectric objects. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 148(2): 39–45, 2004; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/ eej.10292     

Change in PD pattern with aging

The changes in the PD /spl Phi/-q-n pattern and the PD current shape due to the degradation of insulating materials have been investigated with a fast digital oscilloscope and a PD measurement system. In order to verify the effect of gas change, the volume of gas in a void was observed with the /spl Phi/-q-n pattern. It showed that the change in the maximum PD magnitude is related to the change in gas volume according to ageing time. The PD /spl Phi/-q-n pattern could be classified into the five stages. At stage 3 for example, which had a "rabbit-like pattern", the current shape of the first PD in each half-cycle had a large magnitude of the order of 100 mA and a narrow width. At stage 5, which had a "turtle-like pattern", the current shape had a slow rise-time and a slow decay-time. Such changes in PD characteristics will be applicable to the diagnosis of insulation degradation.     

Dielectric relaxation in piezo-, pyro- and ferroelectric polyamide 11

Ferroelectric polyamide 11 films were prepared by melt-quenching, cold-drawing and electrical poling. Their ferroelectricity was studied by means of dielectric-hysteresis measurements. A remnant polarisation of up to 35 mC/m/sup 2/ and a coercive field of 75 MV/m were obtained. The piezoelectric d/sub 33/ coefficient and the pyroelectric coefficient of the films are reduced by annealing just below the melting region, but remain at about 3 pC/N and 8 /spl mu/C/(m/sup 2/K), respectively, during further heat treatment. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS) and thermally stimulated depolarisation (TSD) were applied for investigating the conformational changes induced by melt-quenching, cold-drawing and annealing. The results indicate that the cold-drawn film mainly consists of a rigid amorphous phase which exhibits considerably lower conductivity, no glass transition and consequently no dielectric /spl alpha/ relaxation. Instead, an /spl alpha//sub r/ relaxation is found, which is related to chain motions in regions of the rigid amorphous phase where the amide-group dipoles are not perfectly ordered. Annealing removes imperfectly ordered structures, but does not affect the ferroelectric polarisation. Therefore, it may be concluded that essentially the /spl alpha//sub r/ relaxation causes the thermally nonstable part of the piezo- and pyroelectricity in polyamide 11.     

Wavelet-based noise reduction for improved deconvolution of time-series data in dynamic susceptibility-contrast MRI

Dynamic susceptibility-contrast (DSC) MRI requires deconvolution to retrieve the tissue residue function R(t) and the cerebral blood flow (CBF). In this study, deconvolution of time-series data was performed by wavelet-transform-based denoising combined with the Fourier transform (FT). Traditional FT-based deconvolution of noisy data requires frequency-domain filtering, often leading to excessive smoothing of the recovered signal. In the present approach, only a low degree of regularisation was employed while the major noise reduction was accomplished by wavelet transformation of data and Wiener-like filtering in the wavelet space. After inverse wavelet transform, the estimate of CBF·R(t) was obtained. DSC-MRI signal-versus-time curves (signal-to-noise ratios 40 and 100) were simulated, corresponding to CBF values in the range 10–60 ml/(min 100 g). Three shapes of the tissue residue function were investigated. The technique was also applied to six volunteers. Simulations showed CBF estimates with acceptable accuracy and precision, as well as independence of any time shift between the arterial input function and the tissue concentration curve. The grey-matter to white-matter CBF ratio in volunteers was 2.4±0.2. The proposed wavelet/FT deconvolution is robust and can be implemented into existing perfusion software. CBF maps from healthy volunteers showed high quality.     

Temperature dependent dielectric spectroscopy in frequency domain of high-voltage transformer oils compared to physicochemical results

The temperature dependent dielectric spectroscopy in frequency domain is compared to physicochemical and electrical tests that are periodically applied on highly insulating transformer oils. Complex permittivity and tan/spl delta/ data are obtained as a function of frequency and operation temperatures, to demonstrate the polarization phenomena and the induced loss intensification by the thermally stimulated currents. The acquired dielectric data of oil samples collected from 201 operating high voltage (HV) power transformers, were correlated to their corresponding physicochemical ones in order to demonstrate the future potential employment of the proposed measuring technique in the field of high voltage engineering, towards reliability monitoring of oil filled electrical equipment (OFEE).     

Dielectric spectroscopy in time and frequency domain for HV power equipment. I. Theoretical considerations

Most dangerous breakdowns are caused by the aging effects of HV insulation systems used within HV components, and there is still a lack of appropriate tools to diagnose such systems non-destructively and reliably in the field. This review introduces the theoretical background of dielectric spectroscopy in the time and frequency domains and provides an overview about the specific measuring methods based on this background. The specific methods treated are used for diagnosing electric insulation materials used in power engineering. It indicates that some of these methods may not be sufficient to gain full information about the actual conditions of a test object and that either measurements of polarization and depolarization currents (PDC in the time domain or measurements of C-tan/spl delta/ values (or complex permittivity) in the frequency domain (FDS) should be preferred to obtain a "dielectric response function" which offers much more information to judge the actual state of an insulation material or system.     

Analysis of the electric field and force in an arrangement of a conducting sphere and a plane electrode with a dielectric barrier

This paper presents an analysis of the electric field and dielectrophoretic force in an arrangement consisting of an uncharged conducting sphere and a plane electrode with a dielectric barrier. The electric field is calculated by using the method of multipole images using an iterative algorithm proposed for calculating the images of the dielectric barrier of finite thickness. The calculation results show electric field intensification due to the presence of the dielectric barrier having higher permittivity, /spl epsiv//sub S/, than that of the surrounding medium, /spl epsiv//sub E/; however, if the barrier is separated from the conducting sphere by at least the sphere radius, its influence is negligible. Inside the dielectric barrier, the electric field on the axis of symmetry becomes more uniform and the average field significantly increases with decreasing its thickness. For a case where dielectric barrier is sufficiently thin, the electric field at the contact point and the force on the conducting sphere vary approximately as power functions of /spl epsiv//sub S///spl epsiv//sub E/.     

Absolute cerebral blood flow measured by dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI: a direct comparison with Xe-133 SPECT

Absolute regional cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured in ten healthy volunteers, using both dynamic susceptibility-contrast (DSC) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and Xe-133 SPECT within 4 h. After i.v. injection of Gd-DTPA-BMA (0.3 mmol/kg b.w.), the bolus was monitored with a Simultaneous Dual FLASH pulse sequence (1.5 s/image), providing one slice through brain tissue and a second slice through the carotid artery. Concentration C(t) is proportional to -(1/TE) ln[S(t)/S(0)] was related to CBF as C(t) = CBF [AIF(t) x R(t)], where AIF is the arterial input function and R(t) is the residue function. A singular-value-decomposition-based deconvolution technique was used for retrieval of R(t). Absolute CBF was given by Zierler's area-to-height relation and the central volume principle. For elimination of large vessels (ELV), all MRI-based CBF values exceeding 2.5 times the mean CBF value of the slice were excluded. A correction for partial-volume effects (CPVE) in the artery used for AIF monitoring was based on registration of signal in a phantom with tubes of various diameters (1.5-6.5 mm), providing an individual concentration correction factor applied to AIF data registered in vivo. In the Xe-133 SPECT investigation, 3,000-4,000 MBq of Xe-133 was administered intravenously, and CBF was calculated using the Kanno Lassen algorithm. When ELV and CPVE were applied, DSC-MRI showed average CBF values from the entire slice of 43 +/- 10 ml/(min 100 g) (small-artery AIF) and 48 +/- 17 ml/(min 100 g) (carotid-artery AIF) (mean +/- S.D., n = 10). The corresponding Xe-133-SPECT-based CBF was 33 +/- 6 ml/(min 100 g) (n = 10). The relationships of CBF(MRI) versus CBF(SPECT) showed good linear correlation (r = 0.74-0.83).     

采用微分去极化电流法解析变压器油纸绝缘的介质响应函数

时域介质响应诊断技术是有效诊断变压器油纸绝缘状态的无损检测方法,而绝缘的介质响应数学模型是时域诊断研究的关键手段。针对原有模型未能准确反映介质的极化过程,现有建模方法无法确定极化过程包含的弛豫项数、未能准确地辨识模型参数等问题,根据电介质物理学的研究成果,将方根指数型衰减规律引入介质响应函数,以便其更贴近多种不同条件下的实验规律。同时,在建模中提出了微分去极化电流法,从而解决了一直以来受争议的弛豫项数问题,并实现了介质响应函数的解析。研究结果证明了利用微分去极化电流法建模的唯一性和准确性,为油纸绝缘的时域介质响应诊断提供了新思路。     

Validity of constant voltage stress based reliability assessment of high-/spl kappa/ devices

Charge trapping in high-/spl kappa/ gate dielectrics affects the result of electrical characterization significantly. DC mobility degradation and device threshold voltage instability and C-V and I-V hysteresis are a few examples. The charging effects in high-/spl kappa/ gate dielectric also affect the validity of conventional reliability test methodologies developed for SiO/sub 2/ devices. In this paper, we review high-/spl kappa/ materials specific phenomena that can affect the validity of constant-voltage-stress-based reliability test methods to address the direction of future reliability study on high-/spl kappa/ devices.     

Electrical characterization of benzocyclobutene polymers for electric micromachines

An approach using interdigitated capacitors for electrical characterization of CYCLOTENE, a spin-on low-k benzocyclobutene (BCB)-based polymer is introduced and the effect of moisture uptake is investigated. The dielectric constant of CYCLOTENE is extracted from capacitance measurements with a systematic error less than 0.1%, giving an average value of 2.49 with a standard deviation of 1.5%. The dielectric constant increases by 1.2% after a humidity stress of 85% RH at 85/spl deg/C. The I-V characteristics of CYCLOTENE show a dependency of breakdown strength and leakage current on the geometrical dimensions of the device under test. A breakdown strength of 225V//spl mu/m and 320 V//spl mu/m for 2-/spl mu/m and 3-/spl mu/m finger spacing, respectively, and a leakage current of a few to tens of pA are measured. The I-V characteristics degrade drastically after the humidity stress, showing a breakdown strength of 100 V//spl mu/m and 180 V//spl mu/m for 2-/spl mu/m and 3-/spl mu/m finger spacing, respectively, and a maximum increase in the leakage current as large as one order of magnitude. The maximum performance and long-term reliability of an electric micromachine are adversely affected by the degradation of the breakdown voltage and the leakage current after moisture absorption. It is expected, however, that the electrical efficiency is improved using BCB-based polymers with negligible dependency on moisture absorption.     

A new blind deconvolution algorithm based on the probability distribution method

Blind deconvolution is a method of recovering transmitted signals from only received signals. The probability distribution method is one of the blind deconvolution methods. This method has two problems: it has slower convergence and its reliability is lower. In this paper, we propose a new algorithm for solving these two problems. The proposed algorithm is as follows. (1) It is based on the adaptive processing with each sample. (2) Kurtosis is adaptively estimated by recovered signals with each sample. (3) Cost function is decided by kurtosis. (4) Transmitted signals are recovered by received signals using decided cost function on the sample time. We confirm the validity of the new algorithm by computer simulation. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 162(1): 56–65, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20317     

Equivalent energy function approach to power system probabilisticmodeling

A novel approach, the equivalent energy function (EEF) method, is presented for power system probabilistic modeling. The method performs convolution and deconvolution by using electric energy directly so that the probabilistic modeling is considerably simplified. The EEF method is not only more efficient than any other available method in this domain, but is also more flexible in treating assigned energy units. An approximate deconvolution algorithm and a LOLP (loss-of-load-probability) formula are also given which enable probabilistic modeling to be performed even faster. Numerical examples demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is simple, efficient and more accurate     

Rare-earth-doped GaN: growth, properties, and fabrication of electroluminescent devices

A review is presented of the fabrication, operation, and applications of rare-earth-doped GaN electroluminescent devices (ELDs). GaN:RE ELDs emit light due to impact excitation of the rare earth (RE) ions by hot carriers followed by radiative RE relaxation. By appropriately choosing the RE dopant, narrow linewidth emission can be obtained at selected wavelengths from the ultraviolet to the infrared. The deposition of GaN:RE layers is carried out by solid-source molecular beam epitaxy, and a plasma N/sub 2/ source. Growth mechanisms and optimization of the GaN layers for RE emission are discussed based on RE concentration, growth temperature, and V/III ratio. The fabrication processes and electrical models for both dc- and ac-biased devices are discussed, along with techniques for multicolor integration. Visible emission at red, green, and blue wavelengths from GaN doped with Eu, Er, and Tm has led to the development of flat-panel display (FPD) devices. The brightness characteristics of thick dielectric EL (TDEL) display devices are reviewed as a function of bias, frequency, and time. High contrast TDEL devices using a black dielectric are presented. The fabrication and operation of FPD prototypes are described. Infrared emission at 1.5 /spl mu/m from GaN:Er ELDs has been applied to optical telecommunications devices. The fabrication of GaN channel waveguides by inductively coupled plasma etching is also reviewed, along with waveguide optical characterization.     

Influence of rise time on dielectric parameters extracted from time domain spectroscopy in the context of generator stator insulation

The low-frequency dielectric response of generator stator winding insulation materials was calculated from high voltage time domain spectroscopy measurements. These results were used to calculate the theoretical response after the application of a voltage function consisting of a ramped voltage followed by a constant level voltage. The rate of rise of the ramped portion of the voltage function was shown to influence the well known and much used polarization index (PI) and insulation resistance (IR) parameters.     

变压器油纸绝缘频域介电特征量与绝缘老化状态的关系

为了更好地将频域介电谱技术用于无损诊断变压器油纸绝缘老化状态,通过频域介电谱测试了不同老化程度油纸绝缘试品的频域介电特征量。研究了油纸绝缘试品的相对介电常数、介质损耗因数、电容、体积电导率与频率和绝缘纸老化状态的关系,在分析温度对油纸绝缘试品频域介电特征量影响规律的同时,提出了求解油浸绝缘纸活化能的新方法。结果表明:油纸绝缘试品在10 3～100Hz的频域介电特征量能反映其老化状态;不同老化程度油纸绝缘的电容C(DPt)或相对介电常数r(DPt)在10 3Hz、10 2Hz、10 1Hz的值分别与绝缘纸聚合度差值(DP0 DPt)存在二次多项式函数关系;利用油纸绝缘试品tan曲线求解出的油浸绝缘纸(DP=880)活化能为96.65kJ/mol,利用"频温平移因子"可将已知测试温度下的频域介电特征量推广到未知温度,解决了测试温度不同对FDS结果带来的影响。     

From the editor's desk

In this issue we have three articles. The first, ?Dielectric Spectroscopy Techniques as Quality Control Tool: A Feasibility Study?, by Bouaicha , Fofana and Farzaneh from the Universite du Quebec a Chicoutimi, and some German and French collaborators, is concerned with the feasibility of using time and frequency domain dielectric spectroscopy to monitor the fabrication of oil-impregnated-paper (OIP) condenser bushings. So what is time domain dielectric spectroscopy? It involves measuring the current flowing in an insulator following application and removal of a dc voltage step. Following voltage application the current decays with time, typically as t?n, where 0 < n < 1, and the measurement is continued until the current reaches a nearly constant value, or, more likely, the experimenter runs out of patience and opts to take the current flowing at a specific time as the nearly constant value. Measurements may extend over several hours, depending on temperature and applied field strength. A value for the dc conductivity of the sample can be estimated from the nearly constant current. The long decay leading to quasiequilibrium yields the dielectric response function, about which much has been written and upon which several scientific careers have been based! Theoretically, the current flowing after the voltage is removed, that is, after the sample is short-circuited, should be identical with that flowing during voltage application, after the appropriate shift of t = 0, subtraction of the quasi-equilibrium current, and polarity reversal. The related frequency domain spectroscopy involves the study of ac currents as a function of frequency, the analysis leading to values for the real and imaginary components of the relative permittivity, Σ.     

Measurement of the interface trap and dielectric charge density in high-/spl kappa/ gate stacks

We demonstrate an accurate measurement of the interface trap density and the stress-induced dielectric charge density in Si/high-/spl kappa/ gate dielectric stacks of metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) using the direct-current current-voltage (DCIV) technique. The capture cross section and density of the interface traps in the high-/spl kappa/ gate stack were found to be similar to those of the Si/SiO/sub 2/ interface. A constant-voltage stress of the p-channel MOSFET in inversion is shown to result in a negative dielectric charging and an increase in the interface trap density.     

A high-resolution, multi-template deconvolution algorithm for time-domain UWB channel characterization

Time-domain ultra-wideband (UWB) channel characterization with deconvolution has become increasingly popular. However, owing to the nature of the frequency-selective non-line-of-sight channel on a general wideband channel-sounding pulse, the a priori assumption of the CLEAN deconvolution algorithm does not necessarily hold. Moreover, the assumption of a fixed a priori can easily be violated since the radio-wave propagation mechanisms experienced by the sounding pulse can be frequency-selective. This paper first summarizes the use of the CLEAN algorithm in UWB channel characterization, including a discussion about the a priori assumption, enhancements made to the basic algorithm, and the effect of the a priori assumption on channel characteristics. A study of the a priori dependence is then presented along with real-world measurements to demonstrate the shortcomings of the single-template CLEAN algorithm. Finally, a high-resolution, multi-template deconvolution algorithm is proposed to enhance the channel estimation performance. This algorithm incorporates realistic frequency-dependent pulse distortions and is shown to supersede its predecessors by being computationally efficient, simple, accurate, and deployable for point-to-point measurements.