Electrical properties of polymer modified by metal ion implantation

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has been modified by Ag, Cr, Cu and Si ion implantation with a dose range from 1 x 10(16) to 2 x 10(17) ions cm(-2) using a metal vapor vacuum are (MEVVA) source. The electrical properties of PET have been changed after metal ion implantation. The resistivity of implanted PET decreased obviously with an increase of ion dose. When metal ion dose of 2 x 10(17) cm(-2) was selected, the resistivity of PET could be less than 10 Omega cm, but when Si ions are implanted, the resistivity of PET would be up to several hundred Omega cm. The results show that the conductive behavior of a metal ion implanted sample is obviously different from Si implantation one. The changes of the structure and composition have been observed with transmission electron microscope (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The surface structure is varying after ion implantation and it is believed that the change would cause the improvement of the conductive properties. The mechanism of electrical conduction will be discussed. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.