Corrosion induced electrostatic damage

Abstract

As electronic components use less material, they become more sensitive to voltage and current variations. This increases their operational speed and functionality. Corrosion that was previously inconsequential now becomes a major factor in current electronic components. These problems take on a myriad of new consequences. Of these new problems, the tribocharging and consequent discharging of differential surfaces can be significant. Defects from melted circuits that fail initially, or later in the field (latent defects), or noise generation created by microwave discharges occur. This noise can cause digital service interruption by creating catastrophic bit rate errors. This paper shows these ESD events can take place on matched metal surfaces within 5 to 30 minutes following etching.