A possible explanation of the experimentally observed enhancement of mass transport processes in ionic crystalline solids under the action of high-frequency (HF) electromagnetic fields is suggested. It is based on the ponderomotive effects that occur due to the nonlinear interaction of the HF electric field with the space charge induced by it within the crystal near its surface. Due to the action of the tangential component of the field in the near-surface amorphized layer, where the vacancy mobility is greater than in the bulk, the ponderomotive effects are found to be of sufficient strength to manifest themselves in the experimental conditions.

• Received 3 April 1995

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.52.3030