Importance of screening charge dynamics on polarization switching in polyvinylidene fluoride

The influence of screening dynamics on polarization switching of polyvinylidene fluoride has been investigated theoretically. A phenomenological model that relates released screening charges to the formation of conductivity modified by charge recombination is presented. The interplay of temporal screening charge release and reconstruction modeled through the temporal behavior of conductivity determines decisively the dynamics of polarization switching. Under the assumption that all the screening charges are released instantaneously upon application of a switching field followed by recombination, a fit to experimental polarization switching data over eight orders of magnitude in time is possible.