Static electricity

From Wikinfo

Static electricity is an electric charge between two objects which have no conducting path between them, typically referring to charge with voltage of sufficient magnitude to produce a spark. It is a stored charge that does not flow in a current. The presence of charge means that the objects will exhibit attractive or repulsive forces. Static electricity can also be generated by touching two objects together and then separating them, because of contact electrification and the triboelectric effect. Friction between two objects generates a great amount of static electricity because of the many instances of contact and separation. Usually, substances that don't conduct electricity (insulators) are good at holding a surface charge. Some examples of these substances are rubber, plastic, glass, and pith. The charge that is transferred in static electricity is stored on the surface of each object.

It is most familiar as an occasional annoyance in seasons of low humidity, but can be destructive and harmful in some situations. When working in direct contact with integrated circuit electronics (especially delicate MOSFETs), or in the presence of flammable gas, care must be taken to avoid accumulating and discharging a static charge.

See also

Electronics

• Wimshurst machine
• Van de Graaff generator
• First photoconductive copy
• List of electronics topics

Natural

• Triboelectric effect
• Bioelectricity
• Pith
• Cumulonimbus clouds (and Relative humidity)
  • Lightning
• Chemical Solutions
• Examples of electrical phenomena

Historical

• Luigi Galvani
• Pseudodoxia Epidemica

Other

• Cartridge (weaponry)
• Static

References

• Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "Static_electricity" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Static_electricity, used under the GNU Free Documentation License