Formation and dissipation of a Schottky barrier in a conducting dielectric

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Abstract
The formation of a cathode fall in an insulating material by means of a blocking electrode was studied by von Hippel et al. In this paper we consider the formation of the cathode fall, assuming that the material posseses an intrinsic conductivity whose carriers are not blocked by the electrode contacts. It is shown that the contact barrier should gradually dissipate due to charge neutralization, restoring the usual Ohmic behavior. The motion of the shock front and the external current are calculated.