A positron lifetime study of the electron-beam-induced polymerization of 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate

Positron lifetime measurements have been used to characterize the electron-beam-induced polymerization of 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate (HDODA). Lifetimes were measured as a function of radiation dose over a range of 0.5–7.0 Mrad and analyzed into three components. All three components exhibited some variation with radiation dose. Variations in the longest lifetime component have been interpreted in terms of changes in free volume. These data have been compared with polymer fraction data for electron-irradiated HDODA obtained by gel extraction and by NMR measurements. The positron lifetime parameter that correlates most closely with polymerization as measured by those techniques is the intensity of the longest lived component.