I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

The Top 5 is labeled as “editor’s choice,” which is a good thing this week because if I were limited to just posting the five most viewed news items, this week’s list would be full of our own coverage for IPC APEX EXPO. Judging from the metrics, that content has been extremely popular. If you’re one of the seven or so readers who haven’t yet read through the IPC APEX EXPO coverage, then definitely download your copy of our special edition magazine, the Real Time With… IPC APEX EXPO Show & Tell issue. So, for this week, we’ll assume you’re reading our exclusive coverage already, and concentrate on the other news you need to read. 

EIPC Technical Snapshot: 5G and Loss Minimisation 
Published March 26

I-Connect007 Technical Editor Pete Starkey takes us to the most recent instantiation of the EIPC’s Technical Snapshot sessions, where this month’s topic was “5G and the understanding of loss minimization at the PCB level.” Speakers included Paul Waldner, Manfred Huschka, Julie Mouzon, and Martyn Gaudion. Pete’s review, as usual, is on point with this most relevant topic. 

North American PCB Industry Sales Up 6.1% in February 
Published March 26 

Quoting the article, “PCB bookings in February increased 6 percent year-over-year. Bookings in February increased 14.3 percent from the previous month. ’PCB orders and shipments continue to trend higher,’ said Shawn DuBravac, IPC chief economist. ‘Orders during the month were especially strong, which carry shipments in the coming month.’”

This is encouraging news. Be sure to know the latest and share it with your colleagues. We’re all in this together. 

Siemens Delivers Comprehensive Hardware-assisted Verification System
Published March 29

The Veloce hardware-assisted verification system for the rapid verification of highly sophisticated, next-generation integrated circuit (IC) designs is now public knowledge. This is the first complete offering of a highly cohesive system that Siemens claims “takes hardware, software and system verification to the next level of intelligent digitalization by streamlining and optimizing verification cycles while helping to reduce verification cost.”

The ECAD tools providers continue to push closer and closer to full-system design and simulation. And this direction fits with the idea of “digital twin.” At some point, the PCB will become a part of the entire simulation for chips, chip sets and board assemblies. 

KYZEN to Present at SMTA China East Conference 
Published March 29

Daniel Gao, KYZEN sales manager for Northern and Western China, will present during the SMTA China East Conference on April 22, to be held in Shanghai. Gao will present “The Relationship Between Cleanliness and Reliability/Durability.”

According to the press release, “Gao will explore how a PCB can achieve a ROSE value under the previous 1.56µg/cm² recommended limit, as well as industry acceptable limits of ion chromatography, yet still not meet the reliability and durability requirements of field operation.”

Learn how to avoid cleaning mistakes and reduce your costs while improving your brand reputation. 

MacDermid Alpha a Supporting Partner at IMAPS Device Packaging Conference 
Published March 30, 2021            

MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions, a global leader in high performance electronics materials, will be a Supporting Partner at the upcoming IMAPS Device Packaging Conference being held virtually from April 12-15, 2021. With a technical presentation on April 13, panel participation on April 15, and a MacDermid Alpha-hosted “Meet the Experts” forum on April 13, there will be plenty of opportunity to connect with the MacDermid Alpha staff during this event.