Mr. Static Index

Think you know all there is to know about electrostatics? Think again. Niels Jonassen (Mr. Static) explores charging, ionization, explosions, and other ESD-related topics in this bimonthly column. Browse away via the links below.

It is with sadness that we note that Niels Jonassen passed away in 2006. We hope you continue to enjoy his past columns.

Accupuncture and Atmospheric Ions
New experiments look at the effect of acupuncture needles on the number of ions arriving to a body in an electric field.

Are Ions Good for You?
Mr. Static explores the reputed physiological effects of ions.

Environmental ESD, Part II: Thunderstorms and Lightining Discharges
The properties of thunderstorms and lightning discharges as relates to the atmospheric electric circuit are discussed.

Environmental ESD, Part I: The Atmospheric Electric Circuit
An understanding of the atmospheric electric circuit provides an insight into the processes underlying ESD events.

Neutralization of Static Charges by Air Ions: Part II, Experimental Results
This second installment on charge neutralization demonstrates that a CPM can be used to determine fundamental atmospheric electric qualities.

Neutralization of Static Charges by Air Ions: Part I, Theory
When the conductivity of the material cannot be made acceptable, air ions can be used to neutralize static charges.

Breakdown
Electrical breakdown is not always associated with high voltage.

Voltage and Field Strength: Part II, Conductors
Screening noncontacting meters will often reduce the field distortion caused by the presence of meters.

Charging by Walking
Walking on an insulative floor covering produces a predictable charge.

Useful Static Electricity
Most people are unaware of the important applications that are based on electrostatic principles.

From Electrostatics to ESD
I have often been asked, "What's the difference between electrostatics and static electricity?" Well, I believe that if there is a difference, it's mostly historical.

Polarization, for Better or Worse
In a previous article we discussed the phenomenon of induction, that is, the effect of an electric field on a conductor (see Mr. Static in the May/June 2000 issue). If a conductor is placed in an electric field, charges will move within the conductor until the interior field is zero.

Induction: What It Means to ESD
Can an uncharged, insulated conductor have a voltage of, say, 1000 V? Can a charged, insulated conductor have zero voltage? The answer common to both of these seemingly paradoxical questions is yes, if we're dealing with the concept of induction.

How Fast Does a Charge Decay?
There's a phrase that has been bothering me for years: "How do you remove static electricity?" At one level the question makes sense.

Is Static Electricity Static?
Static electricity is often considered to be the effect of electric charges at rest on insulators or insulated conductors—and this is surely true in part.

Explosions and ESD
Over the years, there have been numerous reports of explosions in grain silos, of oil tankers blowing up during tank washing, of patients being killed during an operation by a pressure wave set off by an ignition of the anesthetic gas...

Charges Are Forever
In 1795, Charles-Augustin de Coulomb observed that an insulated charged body exposed to atmospheric air would gradually lose its charge.

Ions
The word ion (in Greek, 10

) means wanderer. It denotes an entity, a particle, that will move under the action of an electric field. So, in principle, valence electrons in metals or holes in semiconductors could be considered ions.

Static Hocus-Pocus
When you read an ad extolling the virtues of some device and promising fantastic results, you often wonder, "Can this be true?" If you're not familiar with the device, you may let it go, or maybe even believe the hype a little bit-nid moy, as they say here in Bangkok.