grinding down chips was Re: QX10 graphics board - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

27 Jan 2006

On Jan 26 2006, 19:09, Eric J Korpela wrote:
...
  On 1/24/06, Chris M <chrism3667 at yahoo.com>
wrote:
 >  I've been dying to ask this question. Can you
 > actually learn something (hopefully a whole lot!)
 > about a chip if you actually did this??? What if there
 > was some old chip for which there is no documentation.
 > If, given the availability of the proper equipment
 > (surface grinder?), you were able to take off say
 > .0001" of material at a time, or thereabouts ;), would
 > you have the ability to photograph it, and have
 > something in the way of a working schematic? 
It's not done by grinding, but it can be done by dissolving the epoxy
encasulation in fuming nitric acid.  I found some good descriptions of
the process several years ago while researching the security problems
associated with Mondex.

-- 
Pete						Peter Turnbull
						Network Manager
						University of York