Electron emission during pulsed polarization switching of ferroelectric ceramics

It is shown that in the pulsed polarization switching of polycrystalline ferroelectrics in high fields the external field is damped by the electronic subsystem associated with the crystallite boundaries. Therefore, the reorganization of a ferroelectric system with a high density of surface states at the crystallite boundaries is not irreversible, and the system returns to its former state after the polarization-switching voltage is removed. Because of this, electron emission from the surface of a ferroelectric ceramic can be brought about by unipolar pulses. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 69, 49–52 (July 1999)