How do i ground myself to an aluminum case?

[XrayMan]

I have always had a metal pc tower. Now i am building a new comp. with an aluminum one, since it is alot lighter in weight. I have always in the past used my wrist strap to ground myself when putting the new hardware inside, and hooked the clamp at the end to the metal part of the case. Where on the aluminum case would i attach this strap? If i can't hook it to that case, then does anyone have a good suggestion of what other kind of metal thing that i could hook it to?

 

[XrayMan]

I never knew that. Thanks for the info.

 

[chuckshissle]

You're kidding. :|

 

[Hex]

Lick your finger and touch it.

 

[monkeymanuk]

Agreed, just make sure the power cord is plugged in and switched on.

Static elec (according to a electronics friend) has never been physically proven to damage chips.

It's really only annecdotal evidence that has has indicated that electrostatic discharge damages semiconductor devices.

The industry takes a better to be safe than sorry approach.

 

[monkeymanuk]

I know its bad c'mon.

Just mentioning what my electronics engineer buddy had to say.

He said that the only proof that ESD had an effect was by comparing life of chips and boards assembled in Electrostatic safe environments compared to those assembled in non-electrastic safe environment.

We all know it exists which is why we all take precautions, but you can't prove (AFAIK) whether a chip has been subjected to an ESD. There are no physical symptoms, excluding a huge ESD completely destroying a chip.

 

[The_Hanz]

well its risky and involves water and wires to a 120 outlet :twisted:
the ground must be attached to your left nut.preferably soldered. :twisted: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Don't forget to invest in some quality diaelectric grease there!

 

[Datman]

.
Just follow the instructions in this link.


.

 

[threep]

but you can't prove (AFAIK) whether a chip has been subjected to an ESD. There are no physical symptoms, excluding a huge ESD completely destroying a chip.

You can prove it. All you need is a microscope. Rub your feet across the carpet and touch a doorknob. That zap is thousands of volts, plenty of energy to fry a transistor. I've seen a static zap take out a computer motherboard. I've experienced first hand a static zap take out a discrete logical AND gate transistor.

Your electronics engineer buddy is wrong. But don't take my word for it. A simple google or wikipedia search on Electrostatic Discharge can prove it as well:
http://stshome.de/gfx/esd-schaden.gif
http://www.research.ibm.com/journal/rd/451/angel24.jpg
http://www.cdnet.edu.cn/mirror/singap_college/www.ime.org.sg/uptraining/trainpic02.gif

8)

 

[monkeymanuk]

Are there any before and after pics?????

We know that a high enough ESD can cause failure but how can you tell if it has occurred when a chip does not fail?????

I'll be showing my friend the pics you provided, maybe he can gibe me some more info on the matter.

 

[threep]

The before pictures would look like a normal integrated circuit under a microscope.

Well, it would depend on the chip and where the static discharge occurred. If it is just between two pins used for power and ground, perhaps they can handle the power. Remember, an AMD X2 processor has over 200 million transistors on a piece of silicon the size of a thumbnail. The chip companies spend millions of dollars on ESD protective equipment, materials and training every year, and they don't do that for no reason.

If you or I accidentally zap our video card or memory stick, we're out $100 or less. If an employee at Intel accidentally zaps a single 300mm wafer (fully loaded with CPU's - hundreds of CPU's) they would be out thousands, or even a million dollars. That's why they've worked very hard to automate the fabs and take the human out of the process.

Every electronics company in the world makes a big deal out of ESD protection and training. Check out this ESD Training Program from Cisco:
http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/le31/esd/WelcomeP.html
Its very basic, but you get the idea.

8)

 

[blunc]

Are there any before and after pics?????

We know that a high enough ESD can cause failure but how can you tell if it has occurred when a chip does not fail?????

I don't have pix to back this up on hand....but I have seen photos of ESD damage, in a lot of cases the I/O port protection diodes are blown due to the static charge (ZAP) exceeding the gate breakdown voltage. While this doesn't always make a chip completely unusable it will almost always make part of the chip not work as designed.

Maybe your electronics buddy is only used to working with high power/current devices that are not quite as sensitive as the RF transceiver chip in cell phones.

 

[niz]

Agreed, just make sure the power cord is plugged in and switched on.

Static elec (according to a electronics friend) has never been physically proven to damage chips.

It's really only annecdotal evidence that has has indicated that electrostatic discharge damages semiconductor devices.

The industry takes a better to be safe than sorry approach.

Your frind is so wrong its not funny.
I work in the aviation electronics industry. We have to take very careful precautions against static all the time, and I have seen first-hand the (obvious) effects of static when you don't.

 

[niz]

Agreed, just make sure the power cord is plugged in and switched on.

Static elec (according to a electronics friend) has never been physically proven to damage chips.

It's really only annecdotal evidence that has has indicated that electrostatic discharge damages semiconductor devices.

The industry takes a better to be safe than sorry approach.

Your friend is so wrong its not funny.
I work in the aviation electronics industry. We have to take very careful precautions against static all the time, and I have seen first-hand the (obvious) effects of static when you don't.

Also to the OP: youy need to ground yourself to... well... ground. (the earth connector on a wall socket). Unless your PC is plugged-in (which is unlikely/stupid if you're assembling a PC) and also the PSU also connects earth to your case (which it probably does but not guaranteed), just grounding yourself to the case won't do anything.

 

[monkeymanuk]

Your friend is so wrong its not funny.

My friend didn't actuall say that ESD did not affect chips, quite the contrary. He merely stated that ESD does not necessarily leave any physical damage but is known to shorten the life of electronic components.

The chip doesn't necessarily blow!

BTW: he does follow all the necessary safety precautions whilst working.

 

[monkeymanuk]

Your friend is so wrong its not funny.

My friend didn't actuall say that ESD did not affect chips, quite the contrary. He merely stated that ESD does not necessarily leave any physical damage but is known to shorten the life of electronic components.

The chip doesn't necessarily blow!

BTW: he does follow all the necessary safety precautions whilst working.

 

[blunc]

[/quote]
My friend didn't actuall say that ESD did not affect chips, quite the contrary. He merely stated that ESD does not necessarily leave any physical damage but is known to shorten the life of electronic components.

The chip doesn't necessarily blow!

BTW: he does follow all the necessary safety precautions whilst working.[/quote]

Ummmm....if it doesn't cause any physical damage, why would the life of the electronic components be shorter?! :roll:

what a load over verbal masturbation!!!

(sometimes I think people don't pay attention to the crapola that comes out of there mouths or typing fingers...)

 

[threep]

I think it would be better to say that most ESD damage is not VISIBLE (to the naked eye), but it is certainly physical damage.

When there is damage caused by a short circuit, chips fry due to massive current flow. Traces burn, the package itself can crack or burn or explode, sockets will melt, etc. That is all visible. But a single ESD zap can certainly physically damage the component and render it just as useless. Whether you let the smoke out or not, its still fried.

Again, you don't have to believe what I say. Read for yourself.

8)

 

[monkeymanuk]

That's what I was trying to say, thanks.

Point being, it is possible to zap a chip accidentally and it will still work normally.

I have just read a few papers about ESD and I'll have to put my friend right.

Thanks

 

[Blouge]

Speaking of ESD, ever since I changed my PSU from Antec Phantom 500 to Thermaltake 850W ToughPower Cable Management, I sometimes get shocked when I touch a PC case while it's running. At worst, it causes a flash and an loud pop near my finger; I think I can see the tiny arc too. I know it's ESD because touching it again doesn't have any effect.

Is this fairly normal? FYI, my case is the steel Antec 900. I could try installing the gromet for the PSU's to seperate it from the case, but I don't know if that helps with ESD. Also, its such an incredibly tight fit; I almost have to stretch the case's metal to get the gromet in. I took it out because I think it's optional and just for acoustic damping and I didn't want it to permanently stretch the case.

 

[croc]

A while back there was a thread in which BM stated that one could just plug a CPU into a block of styrofoam and it'd be safe... JJ posted quite a few articles, links, etc, many pics of actual ESD damaged gates. I am sure that you could do a search for that thread.

 

[davmalu369]

has anybody used anti-static gloves or wireless wrist straps? and do they work?

wireless wrist straps

they also used to sell the gloves, but they're not listed anymore

 

[XrayMan]

Well, after reading all the responses to my post, its safe to say i only learned a little bit out of this. But i do know one thing. I will continue to use a wrist strap and always be cautious of static electricity when building my new computer. I have the Ultra Aluminus case, which by the name is obviously mostly aluminum, and i will connect the wrist strap to the case while installing all the components. Thanks for the input.

 

[XrayMan]

Thanks Mpilchfamily, you've been very helpfull. Need more people out there helping like you do.

 

[ira176]

Aluminum is still metal, and has such as it is called a "sea of electrons" allowing the free flow of electrons. It will conduct away static charges just as well.