The effect of retrapping on short-circuit discharge of insulators

The basic equations relating to the release, trapping and transport of carriers in a charged insulator are introduced and specific relations relating to the zero-field point formulated. Application to a simple space charge model yields analytic solutions for the discharge current I as a function of time t. The effect of retrapping on It versus t plots is considered. An attempt is made to relate the theory to the previously obtained experimental data on high-density polythene and to existing computed solutions of other workers.