Messages in this thread | | | Date | Tue, 23 Apr 1996 01:59:15 -0600 (MDT) | From | Robert Riggs <> | Subject | Re: memtest86, built into kernel |
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On 23-Apr-96 Andreas Kostyrka wrote: >>Even good RAM has some single-bit errors after a few weeks. It can be >>caused by radioactivity (alpha particles) for example. >Hmmm, where is your alpha particle producer in a closed computer box? >When I remember my physics examination right, alpha particles are stopped >even by paper, beta and especially gamma radiation are the ``difficult to >limit'' ones.
From Intel: Soft errors are temporary; a bit of data is lost, but the memory cell still functions correctly and rewriting the data in the cell corrects the error. Soft errors are intermittent errors that occur as a result of the passage of ionizing radiation through the memory cells of semiconductor devices. The most common source of this radiation is alpha particles generated as a result of the decay of thorium and uranium, which are found in trace amounts in the packaging materials of all plastic and ceramic encapsulated devices [3,4].
>So I assume that the plastic cover on the RAM chips is >protection enough, right? > >Andreas
Not when they are the source :)
Rob (rriggs@tesser.com)
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