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I have heard that circuits under construction are more susceptible to ESD damage than finished circuits. My understanding is that it has something to do with ha
by somat 1y ago
I have heard that circuits under construction are more susceptible to ESD damage than finished circuits. My understanding is that it has something to do with having all the grounding hooked up.
- kens 1y agoCoincidentally, I have a blog post on that subject :-) Yes, during the construction of an IC, a wire can act as an antenna and pick up charge that can destroy the chip through ESD. Specifically, if a wire is connected to a transistor gate but the other end is not yet connected, it can pick up charge when the chip is plasma etched, and then blow up the gate. The solution is an "antenna diode", a diode that connects the wire to the substrate to drain off the charge. When the chip is completed and in use, the diode is reverse-biased so it has no effect. https://www.righto.com/2024/11/antenna-diodes-in-pentium-processor.html https://www.righto.com/2024/11/antenna-diodes-in-pentium-pro...