Pyroelectricity due to a space-charge mechanism in a copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinylidene chloride

Abstract
Polarization due to an inhomogeneous space‐charge distribution can result in a small pyroelectric coefficient (∼1–10 pC cm−2 K−1) of opposite sign to the large pyroelectric coefficient (∼1–4 nC cm−2 K−1) observed in crystalline poly(vinylidene fluoride) which is largely due to the temperature‐dependence dipole orientation. The former effect is reported in an amorphous copolymer of acrylonitrile (20%) and vinylidene chloride (80%).