ESD of "bug zapper"

[alt129]

I work at a manufacturer of industrial computer systems. Circuit
boards and IC's are regularly handled. In my department there is a
"bug zapper" How potentially harmful is this? Please assume it is the
world's most powerful "bug zapper"

 

[Chuck]

I work at a manufacturer of industrial computer systems. Circuit
boards and IC's are regularly handled. In my department there is a
"bug zapper" How potentially harmful is this? Please assume it is the
world's most powerful "bug zapper"

Not likely to cause problems with the
IC's unless maybe a rogue bug escapes
the zapper and lands on an IC. I
wouldn't hold my breath.

I assume the workers who handle the
chips are adequately protected against ESD.

Do you have some particular mechanism in
mind by which the zapper would cause
problems?

Chuck

 

[alt129]

Not likely to cause problems with the
IC's unless maybe a rogue bug escapes
the zapper and lands on an IC. I
wouldn't hold my breath.

I assume the workers who handle the
chips are adequately protected against ESD.

Do you have some particular mechanism in
mind by which the zapper would cause
problems?

Chuck

Thanks for answering! I was just wondering if the electromagnetic
field emitted by the zapper could be harmful to any components, boards
or CPU's that are in the vicinity of it (say 5 meters). I recall from
a training about ESD safety I once had that even the EMF from a PC CRT
monitor could be harmful at that distance. Probably not immediately,
but over time...

 

[Chuck]

Thanks for answering! I was just wondering if the electromagnetic
field emitted by the zapper could be harmful to any components, boards
or CPU's that are in the vicinity of it (say 5 meters). I recall from
a training about ESD safety I once had that even the EMF from a PC CRT
monitor could be harmful at that distance. Probably not immediately,
but over time...

I don't think that the normal
conductivity of air would allow enough
current to flow to damage an IC placed
in a strong field. Think about the IC's
in a TV or oscilloscope or computer
monitor: these are all in close
proximity to fairly strong fields and
don't suffer as a consequence.

The damage from ESD is caused by
actually transferring charge to the
component, almost always by direct contact.

Chuck

 

[Chris Jones]

Thanks for answering! I was just wondering if the electromagnetic
field emitted by the zapper could be harmful to any components, boards
or CPU's that are in the vicinity of it (say 5 meters). I recall from
a training about ESD safety I once had that even the EMF from a PC CRT
monitor could be harmful at that distance. Probably not immediately,
but over time...

Perhaps you will find some useful information on this website:
http://www.emcesd.com/

Chris

 

[Jasen Betts]

I work at a manufacturer of industrial computer systems. Circuit
boards and IC's are regularly handled. In my department there is a
"bug zapper" How potentially harmful is this? Please assume it is the
world's most powerful "bug zapper"

All that UV will reduce static electricity in the vacinity.

photoelectric effect.

Bye.
Jasen

 

[neon]

Are you kidding me? NASA will fire you if you just hand over a component to another worker without prior grounding yourself to the bench. You must work in a toy factory. I CAN WALK ON A CARPET AND GET 5000 V would that harm a component even a simple resistor NASA say so it is called stress.

 

[Rich Grise]

I work at a manufacturer of industrial computer systems. Circuit
boards and IC's are regularly handled. In my department there is a
"bug zapper" How potentially harmful is this? Please assume it is the
world's most powerful "bug zapper"

There shouldn't even be a "bug zapper" there. Haven't they discovered
window screens in your country yet? Is it an outdoor factory? (in which
case you'll have more to worry about than bugs!)

The thing with bug zappers is that they zap the exactly wrong bugs.
Toss the zapper and invest in some pyrethrin or DEET.

Good Luck!
Rich