ESD is a major concern when you handle electronic
components, especially sensitive components such as expansion cards,
processors, memory DIMMs, and system boards. Very slight charges can
damage circuits in ways that may not be obvious, such as intermittent
problems or a shortened product life span. As the industry pushes
for lower power requirements and increased density, ESD protection
is an increasing concern.
Due to the
increased density of semiconductors used in recent Dell products,
the sensitivity to static damage is now higher than in previous Dell
products. For this reason, some previously approved methods of handling
parts are no longer applicable.
Two recognized types
of ESD damage are catastrophic and intermittent failures.
Catastrophic—Catastrophic
failures represent approximately 20 percent of ESD-related failures.
The damage causes an immediate and complete loss of device functionality.
An example of catastrophic failure is a memory DIMM that has received
a static shock and immediately generates a "No POST/No Video" symptom
with a beep code emitted for missing or nonfunctional memory.
Intermittent—Intermittent
failures represent approximately 80 percent of ESD-related failures.
The high rate of intermittent failures means that most of the time
when damage occurs, it is not immediately recognizable. The DIMM receives
a static shock, but the tracing is merely weakened and does not immediately
produce outward symptoms related to the damage. The weakened trace
may take weeks or months to melt, and in the meantime may cause degradation
of memory integrity, intermittent memory errors, etc.
The more difficult type of damage to recognize
and troubleshoot is the intermittent (also called latent or "walking
wounded") failure.
Perform the following steps
to prevent ESD damage:
Use a wired anti-static
wrist strap that is properly grounded. The use of wireless anti-static
wrist straps is no longer allowed because they do not provide adequate
protection. Touching the chassis before handling parts does not ensure
adequate ESD protection on parts with increased sensitivity to ESD
damage.
Handle all static-sensitive
components in a static-safe area. If possible, use anti-static floor
pads and workbench pads.
When unpacking a static-sensitive
component from its shipping carton, do not remove the component from
the anti-static packing material until you are ready to install the
component. Before unwrapping the anti-static packaging, ensure that
you discharge static electricity from your body.
Before transporting a
static-sensitive component, place it in an anti-static container or
packaging.
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