Methodology for the characterization of the electrostatic discharge (ESD) event for bodies in approach

An electrostatic discharge event typically occurs when a charged floating body approaches another body, which can be either floating or grounded. In this paper, a methodology is described which can be employed to study the change in potentials of two bodies in an approach state. The calculated or measured capacitance coefficient for the system conductors are used in the analysis to determine the contribution to the total change in potential difference due to each coefficient. The technique can be extended to study the change in body potentials as a function of the speed of approach. Results are presented for a series of experiments performed with two cylindrical conductors with different electrode geometries. The experimental results are compared with estimates obtained using the analytical solution to a two-sphere model of the system conductors.