Electron beam-induced electrostatic charging causes spectral changes of an insulating electrochromic material

Electrostatic charging of electrically insulating samples upon electron irradiation plays a large role in the analysis and processing of materials in biosciences and the semiconductor industry. We have analyzed spectral changes of purple membranes (PMs) containing bacteriorhodopsin, an electrochromic biological material, upon irradiation with electrons at an acceleration voltage of 30 kV. We observed a bathochromic shift in the UV/VIS spectrum of PM films, due to internal electric fields generated by charges injected into the films. The experiments demonstrate that spectroscopic changes, accompanying electron beam-induced charge injection into electrochromic materials, enable quantitative analysis of electrostatic charging of insulators upon electron irradiation by optical spectroscopy.