Positron Annihilation Techniques (PAT) in Polymer Science and Engineering

Abstract

For more than 20 years positron annihilation research has been a branch of basic physics and chemistry. Recently, however, the positron annihilation technique (PAT) has emerged into the field of applied science, thus following the well-known trend that fundamental techniques of basic physics turn out to be of great importance in applied science and technology. Examples of this are x-ray spectroscopy, IR and UV spectroscopy, mass spectroscopy, and NMR. The photoelectron spectroscopy technique (ESCA) is an example of a technique which at present is well established in basis physics and chemistry, but whose possibilities in applied science have not yet been extensively studied. In recent years PAT has been used to investigate defect properties in metals, and it is now accepted as an important new tool in the basic studies of defects in metals [l].