Methodology to study the resistance of spark discharges

Author

Greason, William D.

Author_Institution

Dept. of Electr. Eng., Univ. of Western Ontario, London, Ont., Canada

Volume

35

Issue

2

fYear

1999

Firstpage

359

Lastpage

365

Abstract

Spark discharges are normally associated with real-event electrostatic discharges (ESDs). The electrical characteristics of the spark channel can influence the nature of the discharge current which can cause both direct and indirect damage in semiconductor devices and electronic systems. In this paper, a method is described to determine the resistance of spark discharges. Discharge currents are measured for underdamped and forced overdamped cases; an analysis of the resulting waveforms is used to calculate the effective resistance of the discharge. The technique is applied to measure the resistance of a spark discharge between two spherical electrodes

Keywords

electric current measurement; electric resistance measurement; electrostatic discharge; sparks; direct damage; discharge current; discharge currents measurement; electrical characteristics; electronic systems; forced overdamped case; indirect damage; real-event electrostatic discharges; semiconductor devices; spark channel; spark discharges resistance; spherical electrodes; underdamped case; Current measurement; Electric resistance; Electric variables; Electrical resistance measurement; Electrodes; Electrostatic discharge; Electrostatic measurements; Force measurement; Semiconductor devices; Sparks;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Industry Applications, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0093-9994

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/28.753629

Filename

753629