polaron, electron moving through the constituent atoms of a solid material, causing the neighbouring positive charges to shift toward it and the neighbouring negative charges to shift away. This distortion of the regular position of electrical charges constitutes a region of polarization that travels along with the moving electron. After the electron passes, the region returns to normal. An electron accompanied by this kind of electrical displacement of neighbouring charges constitutes a polaron.
A polaron behaves as a negatively charged particle with a mass greater than that of an isolated electron because of its interaction with the surrounding atoms of the solid. The effect is most pronounced in ionic solids, composed of positively and negatively charged atoms called ions, because the forces between the electron and ions are strong. The strength of these forces is reflected in the mass of the polaron. In common table salt, or sodium chloride, the mass of a polaron is more than twice the mass of a free electron.