Found a stat about static discharge that blew my mind

I was reading through some old IEEE papers last night, looking up ESD specs for a client build... and apparently the average person walking across a carpet can generate up to 35,000 volts without even feeling it. I always knew static was bad for components, but I thought it took like a visible spark to do damage. Turns out, even 1,500 volts can fry sensitive chips, and we never notice half the zaps. Has anyone else looked into how much static they actually produce in their workspace?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_vera14d ago

Wait, you mean we're basically walking around like human tasers and don't even realize it? I had a friend who worked in a server room, and he told me he once fried a whole motherboard just by reaching over to plug something in. He barely felt a tingle, but the board just died on him. Ever since then he wears one of those grounding wrist straps even when he's just opening his computer case at home. It's wild how much damage a little invisible zap can do.

foster.wade14d ago

Dude yes! I had a similar thing happen with an old hard drive back in college. I was just moving my desk around and reached over to unplug the SATA cable and I heard this tiny little pop. Drive was completely dead after that. I didn't even feel a shock or anything, it was just gone. Now I always touch the metal frame of my case before I go poking around inside, it's way too easy to kill expensive parts without knowing it.