Electrically conducting mixtures

Abstract

Mixtures consisting of conducting particles dispersed in an insulating medium are considered, and the electrical conduction which can occur by particles touching is related to the proportion of conducting material present in the mix, and its conductivity. It is found that limiting values of conduction can be obtained for a random dispersion and also for the situation where the conducting material lies in interconnecting channels, both systems being observed in practical mixtures. The way in which the basic relationship can be modified by particle size, shape and orientation, contact resistance and particle packing is also considered.