I've purchased ICs from my local Jaycar store and they sell them on polystyrene foam with foil on top.
Does anyone know where to buy this foam ?
Daniel.
polystyrene foam with foil on top
Author
Message
I am not sure if this will help or not but, foil-backed foam is used for insulation purposes and can be found at your local hardware store...
Jk
If the foam is regular white insulation, and the foil is regular kitchen foil, then you just go to your kitchen shop.
A more professional approach is to use pink or black conductive foam ( which I think is not polystyrene )
The kitchen approach should be fine in practice. But do not use more than once or twice, or else the foil does not make good contact with the leads.
David.
You can use thermocoal instead of the foam. The only thing the foam (or thermocoal) is doing is making sure the leads don't get bent in transit. The real job of antistatic protection is being done by the foil.
Like the other said, use conductive foam if available.
In a pinch, to keep the leads from getting bent, you can stack DIPs on top of one another, placing the last one upside down. :D
While handling static sensitive ICs, especially in the dry winter season, just breathing on your hands helps a great deal. The moisture from your breath kills the static. :D
Level: Raving Lunatic
Joined: Fri. Jul 27, 2001
Posts: 7672 View posts
Location: St. Leonards-on-Sea (UK)
I've not had any problems with static for many years although I don't take any precautions apart from connecting power and attaching JTAGs in the correct sequence. I don't wear any synthetic clothing, which probably helps.
Anti-static storage cabinets are available, but lining ordinary plastic ones with foil should be just as good.
Leon
I, also, had not had any problems with static electricity for a looong time. Unfortunately, a couple of weeks ago I zapped an LCD, through the display, when I reached for the circuit board it is attached to. That row of pixels is shot. The LCD is, of course, soldered into the board...
JC
DocJC wrote:
I, also, had not had any problems with static electricity for a looong time. Unfortunately, a couple of weeks ago I zapped an LCD, through the display, when I reached for the circuit board it is attached to. That row of pixels is shot. The LCD is, of course, soldered into the board...JC
Do you need another LCD, Doc???
I'll be happy to send you one.
Thanks for the offer Carl, but I'm good for now. It was just a timely post, and a frustrating experience...
How is the Fireball CNC project coming along?
JC
Sorry, did not mean to hi-jack the thread.
Check the LCD again after a month or two. Sometimes they recover. Or try leaving it in the sun for a while.
Quote:
Or try leaving it in the sun for a while.
In Cleveland?! :)
Most cloud covered days in the US, or so the story goes. Hence the site of a large arsenal. In the old days you couldn't bomb it if you couldn't find the place!
Thanks for the suggestion.
JC
DocJC wrote:
Cleveland?! :)Most cloud covered days in the US, or so the story goes. Hence the site of a large arsenal. In the old days you couldn't bomb it if you couldn't find the place!
Some might say it looks like it has already been bombed :cry:
Quote:
Some might say it looks like it has already been bombed
..and has produced at least one bomb - Drew Carey. :lol: