We have all heard of or seen the devastating effects of a direct lightning burst. Communication equipment destroyed. Transmitters and EFM devices vaporized into slag metal. Complete process and measurement systems down with extended recovery times. These effects are the most dramatic and the easiest to trace. However, these kinds of events are rare. The more prominent events are those that occur on a day-to-day basis without we, the user, even knowing.
With the advent of the transistor and today when surface mount electronics is the norm and not the exception, transient suppression has become a science of necessity. Tight tolerances of voltage requirements and limited current carrying capabilities makes the new compact integrated circuits much more susceptible to many types of transients.