Electron Drift Mobility in Liquid n-Hexane

Abstract

By means of a new experimental technique, the drift mobility of electrons in liquid n‐hexane has been measured at field strengths below 2 kv/cm and at several temperatures in the range +27° to —47°. The drift mobility is found to vary with temperature as ${\mathrm{\mu =\mu }}_0\hspace{0.17em}\exp \mathrm{(-\Delta \epsilon /kT)}$ , where μ₀=0.3±0.2 cm²/volt‐sec and Δε=0.14±0.02 electron volt. The results indicate that electrons injected into the liquid neither behave as free particles nor are they permanently attached to form negative ions. It is proposed that the injected electrons are alternatively trapped and thermally untrapped many times during their drift through the liquid. The experimental quantity Δε is interpreted as the average energy with which an electron is trapped. The origin of the traps is not evident, but possible trapping mechanisms are discussed.