Dynamics of High-Speed Electrical Tree Growth in Electron-Irradiated Polymethyl Methacrylate | The Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics

Sci. 385, 300 (2024)https://ireap.umd.edu/10.1126/science.ado59432024

Kathryn M. Sturge Noah Hoppis Ariana M. Bussio Jonathan Barney Brian Beaudoin Cameron Brown Bruce Carlsten Carolyn Chun Bryson C. Clifford John Cumings Nicholas Dallmann Jack Fitzgibbon Emily H. Frashure Ashley E. Hammell Jose Hannan Samuel L. Henderson Miriam E. Hiebert James Krutzler Joseph Lichthardt Mark Marr-Lyon Thomas Montano Nathan Moody Alexander Mueller Patrick O'Shea Ryan Schneider Karl Smith Bryce Tappan Clayton Tiemann David Walter Timothy W. Koeth

Journal ArticleAdvanced Materials and Nanotechnology

Dielectric materials are foundational to our modern-day communications, defense, and commerce needs. Although dielectric breakdown is a primary cause of failure of these systems, we do not fully understand this process. We analyzed the dielectric breakdown channel propagation dynamics of two distinct types of electrical trees. One type of these electrical trees has not been formally classified. We observed the propagation speed of this electrical tree type to exceed 10 million meters per second. These results identify substantial gaps in the understanding of dielectric breakdown, and filling these gaps is paramount to the design and engineering of dielectric materials that are less susceptible to electrostatic discharge failure.

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