Charge Propagation along the Polymer Fiber of Polyhydroxybutyrate: Is it Possible to Apply the Cable Model?

Abstract

This article considers experimental data on the surface charge propagation along the dielectric polymer fibers. Nonwoven polymer materials based on polyhydroxybutyrate obtained by electrospinning technique were used as an example of dielectric fibers in our experiments. Polymer fiber charging was investigated under the electron beam in a vacuum chamber of the scanning electron microscope. The fiber electric response registration was performed in a TV mode and in dynamic conditions using oscilloscopic sectioning visualization. Digitized images were processed using specialized software by Sobel-Feldman operator (Sobel filter), visualizing isopotential lines of the electron beam-induced emission. The results obtained were analyzed in the framework of the Roll’s cable model, which has been extrapolated from the electrical signal transduction along the nerve fibers to the charge propagation along the dielectric polymer fibers.