Electrostatic Discharge and its Implications

Various methods to assist in the protection against electrostatic (EOS) overstress or electrostatic discharge (ESF) damage to ESD sensitive (ESDS) devices.

Authored by William W. West IV Senior Auditor - Management Systems Certification TUV Rheinland North America

Introduction
In the late 1970s, electrostatic discharge, or ESD, became a large problem in the electronics industry. Low level ESD events from people were causing device failures and yielding loses. As the industry learned about this phenomenon, both device design improvements and process changes were made to make the devices more robust and the processes more capable of handling these devices.

Static Electricity
Static electricity is defined as an electrical charge caused by an imbalance of electrons on the surface of a material. This electrical charge may be transferred from one material to another by way of an electrostatic discharge (ESD). Static electricity has various sources. Walking across carpets, tiled floors, rolling an office chair with polyurethane foam padding, and even lifting envelopes off a workbench can all cause enough static discharge to damage electronic components. The effects of ESD damage range from immediate device failure to sporadic field problems, and erratic operation of components. ESD damage can also weaken parts that may have passed test inspections, but fail early in field use.

Static Source
Humidity Walking across carpet Walking over vinyl floor Worker at bench Handling vinyl envelopes for work instructions Handling common poly bag picked up from bench Work chair padded with polyurethane foam 35,000 12,000 6,000 7,000 20,000 18,000

Electrostatic Voltages
10-20 % Relative 65-90 % Relative Humidity 1,500 250 100 600 1,200 1,500

Electrostatic Discharge Models

Electrostatic discharge has four basic models: the Human Body Model, the Machine Model, the Charged Device Model and the Field Induced Model. 1. The Human Body Model occurs when a person touches a grounded device. For people handling ESD sensitive devices, personnel grounding systems must be designed to limit body voltages to less than 100 volts. 2. The Machine Model is when a discharge occurs from a charged piece of equipment to an ESD sensitive product. To protect against Machine Model ESD discharges, all conductive elements that contact ESD sensitive devices must be grounded.

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3. The Charged Device Model refers to a discharge from a charged device to another object. 4. The Field Induced Model is when an ESD sensitive device is grounded in the presence of a static field.

ESD Sensitivity
Since the human body was originally the most common and damaging source of electrostatic discharge, the most common measurement of ESD sensitivity is by the Human Body Model (HBM). In this test a charged 100pF capacitor is discharged into the device via a 1,000 ohm resistor. The 100pF capacitor simulates charges stored on the average human body and the resistor simulates the resistance of the human body. The ESD sensitivity of devices is given as an ESD susceptibility threshold voltage, which is the maximum test voltage at which the device did not suffer damage.

Electrostatic Discharge Control Plan

The organization should establish an Electrostatic Discharge Control Plan. This plan will address and identify items such as: Responsibilities Define the roles and responsibilities of ESD Control Engineer, Facility Engineer, Quality Assurance Representative, Operating Personnel, Operating Manager, Supervisors and Lead Person. ESD Protected Areas (EPAs) Handling of ESDS parts, assemblies and equipment without ESD protective covering, container or packaging can only be preformed within ESD protected areas. An ESD protected area may be a single workstation, laboratory, room, building or any area with pre-designated boundaries that contain materials and equipment designed to limit damage by electrostatic discharge. The personnel working in an ESDS protected area should be limited to personnel who have successfully completed ESD control training. Persons who may occasionally enter ESD protected areas to observe a work activity being preformed may not necessarily be required to have EDS control training, as they will not be handling ESD sensitive devices or performing any work themselves in the ESD protective area. The initial setup of ESD protected areas should be approved by a designated person to ensure compliance before it can be used. Personnel ESD Control Training The ESD control training is intended for all personnel managing, supervising, leading or performing work on or with ESD items in areas, such as: engineering, assembly, soldering, cleaning, inspections, testing, trouble shooting, reworking, packaging, receiving and shipping. The organization should create a training syllabus for use by the trainer. When preparing the controlled ESD training documents, examples and methods for verifying ESD competence after training is completed should

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be included. The ESD training should, at a minimum, provide training on ESD control fundamentals, work environment requirements, and ESD protected area approvals. Training should be documented and training records should be retained in accordance with the organizations records retention policy and/or procedure. ESD Protective Workstations It is recommended that surfaces of benches or workstations where unprotected ESDS items are placed be static-dissipative and grounded. For surfaces in contact with unprotected ESDS devices, it is recommended to have surface resistivity between 106 and 1012 ohms/square. An ESD protected area should extend a minimum of 12 inches surrounding the ESD work bench. The ESD protected area, should at a minimum, be clearly designated as ESD-protected by signs and/or warning floor tape. The distance requirement may not apply where access to the work station is physically precluded by wall, cabinets, benches or any object that prevents contact with the ESDS items at the work station. Even when the unprotected ESDS devices are placed on a grounded static-dissipative surface, materials subject to be charged with electro-statics, such as paper, plastic and other non conductive materials, should be kept 12 away from the unprotected ESDS devices or 3 away from the edge of grounded static-dissipative surfaces. Purchase requesters should carefully check the specification for static-dissipative mats and benches before placing the order. Grounding An ESD ground must be established for all ESD protective workstations and personal grounding systems located within ESD protected areas. The ESD ground would preferably be securely hardwired to a facility ground. Wrist Straps Humans are the greatest source of uncontrolled electrostatic discharge. Wrist straps should be used as the primary method to ground personnel when within 12 inches of unprotected ESDS items. Wrist straps should be worn in direct contact with the users bare skin. The ground connection end of the wrist strap cord should be connected to the ESD ground. The organization should provide a method to verify the effectiveness of the wrist strap prior to the start of the day and/or shift. Adhesive Tapes Ordinary adhesive tapes such as duct tape, masking tape and cellophane tape can be highly chargeable. Only anti-static tape or conductive tape should be used near or in direct contact with unprotected ESDS items or placed on top of ESD mats.

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ESD Protective Packaging All ESDS items should be contained within ESD-protective containers for movement between ESD-protected areas and inventory storage. The objective of ESD protection is to prevent ESD to the item contained within, to allow for dissipation of charge, and to prevent charging of the ESD item by an external electrostatic field. Purchase requesters should carefully check the material specification from the manufacturer before the order is placed. The requester should even require the supplier to forward a copy of a certificate of analysis (COA) or a certificate of compliance (COC) to verify that the material specifications actually comply to the requirements. Requirements for Handling ESDS Items Unprotected ESDS items shall be handled only in an ESD-protected area. Outside ESD-protected areas, ESDS items shall be enclosed in ESD-protective packaging or container, unless they are placed on certified ESD Testing Area or WIP Storage Shelf Unprotected ESDS items shall not be passed from one person to another unless both persons are properly grounded Paperwork accompanying an ESDS item (e.g., QA records, routing and instructions) shall not come in physical contact with an ESDS item. All test equipment and fixtures used in ESD-protected areas shall be grounded before and during use. A common ground shall be established between an ESDS item and any test equipment before connecting or disconnecting test cables. Personnel handling ESDS items shall avoid physical activities that produce static charges (e.g., wiping feet, adding or removing items of clothes) while in the vicinity of ESDS items. Since electrostatic discharge control plans vary greatly from organization to organization, care should be taken to ensure the contents for the control plan address the needs of the organization, while protecting the materials and/or product during each process and/or function. Loss of product and Revenue due to ESD failures The costs associated with ESD failures can be measured in the actual manufacturing process as well as in the customer returns and aftermarket failures. Aftermarket failures have been defined as an item that was manufactured that is intended to become a part within another assembly. It is estimated that an average sized organization (100-300 employees) will experience a loss of one (1) to three (3) hundred thousand dollars per year due to ESD failures within the manufacturing process alone, while returned product from customers will increase this number greatly. The same sized organization that manufactures product for other companies that assemble products at the component level will see an increase of this number another one hundred (100) thousand dollars. .

Electrostatic Discharge and its Implications

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About the Author William W. (Bill) West IV is a Senior Auditor for Management Systems Certification at TUV Rheinland of NA. Bill has a PhD in International Business and has worked with a variety of clients serving international markets. Prior to joining TUV Rheinland, Bill was the CEO of a consulting organization with a focus on operational excellence; additionally he has served in senior positions within larger American based corporations.

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Electrostatic Discharge and its Implications

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