They should be the same, as Blair said. Sounds like the soldering iron
and mat are not connected to the same "ground". This is not an ESD
issue, rather an EOS issue and yes it could be very damaging. When the
electrical system ground is open I have measured potentials between 40
and 90 volts. That is where I would look first. What is the resistance
to ground through the iron? Do you have a GFI on the solder iron? Check
for a faulty ground at the outlet. Then check the AC box. How old is the
building?

> -----Original Message-----
> From: TechNet [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Karnwal, Pankaj
> Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2004 4:26 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [TN] iron tip potential
>
>
> Dear all, hello
>
> My question about the potential deference between the
> soldering iron tip and the ESD grounded mat. I observed that
> it is about 20 to 30 volts, is it safe for ESD sensitive
> device? and is it mandatory to keep the iron tip on same
> potential with ESD grounded mat.
>
>
>
> Pankaj Karnwal
> Jr. Engineer QA
>
> Barco Electronics System  (P) Ltd.
>
WWW.barco.com
mailto:[log in to unmask]

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