posted on Apr, 4 2011 @ 11:16 AM
From a keelynet link about electrets:
QUESTION: Does the electret effect wear out or dissipate over time?
ANSWER: The question as to whether the electret effect wears out is not a simple one to answer. I am clearly using it in a way that is different. The
fact of the matter is that, in general, the electret effect is unwanted, and engineers are normally working to prevent or eliminate it. The fact that
they have to work very hard to do so is an indication that it is pretty stable. Thus, the best answer I can give is that it doesn't wear out in the
short term (years).
I have learned that when the electret effect was first observed, it was produced in a relatively soft wax and if left undischarged for a long period
of time, dissipated. In order to preserve an electret device in these soft mediums, they wrapped them in foil which would have continually discharged
them.
This would at first seem to to contrary to what one would expect, as the continual discharge would be, in effect, dissipating the energy the electret
produced. But if you look at it from the perspective of the effect that the electric field has on the material of the device itself, it is easily
understood. The electric field would produce a counter force against the molecular distortion that was producing it which would tend to undo the
distortion.
This means that an electret placed in a circuit which used its field at a low level would be very, very stable.
THIS IS THE PROPERTY I WILL EXPLOIT