Electrical conductivity in the metal-polymer-metal system: The role of boundary conditions

Abstract

We study a new type of charge instability in electroactive polymers, an instability caused by a change in the boundary condition at the metal-polymer interface. The change in the boundary conditions is achieved by melting one of the electrodes in a measuring cell of the metal-polymer-metal sandwich type. Charge instability manifests itself in the form of an insulator-metal phase transition, which emerges when one of the electrodes is melted. We list the results of numerous studies of the role of artifacts. Finally, we propose a model that explains several features of the phenomenon.