Tom Ricciardelli recently appeared on the Reliability Matters podcast with Mike Conrad of the Printed Circuit Engineering Association. Here’s a notable quote from Michael Russell during the podcast:
“Electrostatics is the charge that gets generated when any two materials come into contact and then separate. For example, putting your foot on the floor and picking it up as you walk is a separation and you generate a charge. The same with taking off or putting on a sweater on, even moving in your chair. And the amount of charge that gets generated will depend on a lot of things. It will depend on the materials that are touching and separating…When you feel a shock, say on a doorknob during winter, that's at least 3000 volts. The voltage that you generate just walking around in an uncontrolled winter environment has been measured to be as high as 35,000 volts. The voltage levels that can damage an exposed circuit are quite low. Many of them are under 100 volts. So, you could easily be generating thousands of volts if you’re in an uncontrolled situation. And yet the circuitry, the chips that you deal with, can be sensitive to 100 volts or less.”
For more, check out the Full Interview.
