An analysis of the fields on the horizontal coupling plane in ESD testing

Field levels in indirect Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) test setups are not known yet. has been proposed to ANSI and IEC to use a horizontal simulator position instead of a vertical position in indirect ESD testing. This paper shows the field values on the Horizontal Coupling Plane for different topologies in comparison to human ESD and questions if the goal of the change - a reduction of the simulator influence - will be achieved. Also, investigations dealing with the sensitivity of digital devices to impulsive fields are presented.