Quantification of ESD Pulses Caused by Collision of Objects

Well-insulated portable devices are exposed to field coupled impulsive ESDs if they are carried e.g., in a backpack. These pulses are created by tribo-charging of metallic objects as a result of movement and subsequent discharges. Due to the size of the metallic objects and low charge voltages, the frequency spectrum exceeds 5 GHz. The pulses can damage or upset devices. The paper quantifies the charge voltages and transient field strength by reproducing typical scenario and capturing transient fields with a bandwidth of more than 10 GHz. The charge voltages are estimated by comparing measurements to numerical modeling of the discharges.