[arm-allstar] RPi2 Accidental crashes

[David McGough]

Hi Stan,

The issue is literally the photoelectric effect causing the problem (not
EMP).  So, the chip needs better shielding from light. This phenomenon can
happen with -all- integrated circuits, transistors, diodes, etc. However,
most have a thick layer of opaque plastic (or ceramic or metal)
encapsulating them, which stops the light from reaching the actual
sensitive semiconductor materials.

Unfortunately, that plastic layer also makes the chip considerably bigger.  
So, in this case, the chip manufacturer left the plastic off, to reduce
size. The big negative side effect is that bright light makes it act
like a little solar cell, totally confusing it and making it loose voltage
regulation. The only good thing is that, when this happens, the output
voltage seems to drop (at least based on the article I saw!)--so,
hopefully not causing any permanent circuit damage.

73, David KB4FXC


On Sat, 27 Feb 2016, Stanley Stanukinos via arm-allstar wrote:

> Interesting issue, I would have thought it was the energy pulse but 
when I read the article further it could even be induced by using a 
laser. Sounds like the chip mfg needs to do a little work in emp 
reduction.  
> 
> Stan
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
>