The temperature dependence of the transient photoconductivity for cubic AgBr and AgBr:I emulsion grains

Abstract

A model for the mechanism controlling transient photoconductivity (TPC) decay is proposed. From this model, the temperature dependence of the TPC response time is derived. This theoretical result allows the authors to explain the experimentally observed temperature dependence of the TPC response times, supporting thereby the proposed model for the TPC decay mechanism. The influence of the presence of iodide on the temperature dependence of the TPC response time is obvious. For AgBr:I emulsions at least two distinct linear parts in the Arrhenius plot were found, a first one resulting in a high activation energy associated with the activation energy for interstitial motion and a second one leading to a low activation energy corresponding to the trap depth of the shallow electron traps. Pure AgBr shows only one activation energy, presumably because interstitial motion remains possible at temperatures down to 40 K.