electrical breakdown

Physical phenomenon where applying sufficient voltage causes an electrical insulator to become conductive

Also known as dielectric breakdown

Instance of: electrical phenomenon
Subclass of: failure

Overview

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · Read full article · Text CC BY-SA 4.0

In electronics, electrical breakdown or dielectric breakdown is a process that occurs when an electrically insulating material, subjected to a high enough voltage, suddenly becomes a conductor and current flows through it. All insulating materials undergo breakdown when the electric field caused by an applied voltage exceeds the material's dielectric strength. The voltage at which a given insulating object becomes conductive is called its breakdown voltage and, in addition to its dielectric strength, depends on its size and shape, and the location on the object at which the voltage is applied. Under sufficient voltage, electrical breakdown can occur within solids, liquids, or gases. However, the specific breakdown mechanisms are different for each kind of dielectric medium.

Overview

All data

22 statements · 27% with external sources · numbers in brackets are citations

Cause: high voltage
Class of object(s) of occurrence: dielectric
Has effect: electrical conduction
electric discharge

On other databases

15 identifiers linking electrical breakdown across the web's reference databases

Data quality

statements

27%

externally sourced

Source last edited May 25, 2026. AIDb refreshes this page daily.

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AIDb. (2026). electrical breakdown (Q422584). Retrieved from https://aidb.si/e/electrical-breakdown-Q422584