Degradation of electrographic images due to surface lateral conduction

The electrical conduction at the surface layer of a photoreceptor can cause degradation of electrostatic latent images in electrog-raphy. Previous studies of this phenomenon either have required a high-resolution probe for investigations of fine line patterns or have been limited by the probe size to investigations of broad line patterns. This report describes a coordinated theoretical and experimental study that enables the experiments made at conveniently low resolution and long times to predict the impact of lateral conduction in the regimes of high resolution and high process speed. The technique is illustrated with a layer of developed liquid toner on a photoreceptor, which has important implications in the electrical specification of toners for use in color-superimposing processes.