-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current Issue
Power Integrity
Current power demands are increasing, especially with AI, 5G, and EV chips. This month, our experts share “watt’s up” with power integrity, from planning and layout through measurement and manufacturing.
Signal Integrity
If you don’t have signal integrity problems now, you will eventually. This month, our expert contributors share a variety of SI techniques that can help designers avoid ground bounce, crosstalk, parasitic issues, and much more.
Proper Floor Planning
Floor planning decisions can make or break performance, manufacturability, and timelines. This month’s contributors weigh in with their best practices for proper floor planning and specific strategies to get it right.
- Articles
- Columns
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
Being the Best Design Engineer
March 21, 2024 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
During DesignCon 2024, I met with Bill Hargin, founder and CEO (Chief Everything Officer) of the stackup design software company Z-zero. In this interview, Bill discusses his stackup curriculum, what it takes to become a great design engineer, and why the best designers keep reading and challenging themselves constantly so they can stay on top of their game.
Andy Shaughnessy: Bill, you did a presentation here at DesignCon. Tell me about it.
Hargin: Yes, it was great—it’s a popular topic, and the class was standing room only. The topic was the same as the title of the book I just wrote for I-Connect007, Stackups: The Design Within the Design. It's kind of like a red pill vs. blue pill situation. You can have the blue pill and have your fabricators design your stackups, or the red pill, and you can learn to do the nitty gritty work yourself as a CAD designer or an engineer.
Shaughnessy: Generally, you want the freedom of the red pill, so that you know what's going on, I imagine.
Hargin: Of course. There's a lot to learn, and there aren't college curriculums teaching stackup design. There isn't that much stackup training out there. So, I've really been leaning into researching it. If I wrote that book again today, it would be a totally different book. It's not that stackups have changed; I just keep learning. I'm researching at the same time that I'm developing software and teaching others how to do this stuff.
As Einstein said, “The more I learned about the universe, the more I realized how much I don't know.” It sounds weird to say that about stackups, but it's a little like that. What I find is that the engineering hardware design part of the world is pretty interested in learning how to do a better job with the backbone of the PCB, the stackup.
Shaughnessy: As you say, the fabricator will do the stackup, but it benefits everybody if the person at the front end understands more about it. But stackups seem to give people such a hard time.
Hargin: The problem is, let's say you have a master's degree in electrical engineering. You're a pretty smart guy. You've been trained on electromagnetics, and all the circuit theory that somebody could want. You might even be able to recite Maxwell's equations. But none of that helps you do a stackup, because the stackup is largely mechanical, with electrical properties. So, how do you learn how to do that? You need training, and having a good tool helps. I'm not trying to just sell my software like an infomercial. But the person who thought of this, the person who developed the class, and the person who developed the software, it's all the same guy. So, I can't separate those three things.
To read this entire conversation, which appeared in the March 2024 issue of Design007 Magazine, click here.
Testimonial
"In a year when every marketing dollar mattered, I chose to keep I-Connect007 in our 2025 plan. Their commitment to high-quality, insightful content aligns with Koh Young’s values and helps readers navigate a changing industry. "
Brent Fischthal - Koh YoungSuggested Items
Peters, Starteam, and Würth Elektronik Team Up For Digital Coating Technology
10/23/2025 | PetersUnder this heading, the PCB manufacturers Starteam and Würth Elektronik, along with Peters as inkjet coating supplier, have taken the initiative and worked together for months in trusting and target-oriented cooperation, to promote this innovative digital coating technology for solder resists and establish it on the market.
AI Triggers Next Paradigm Shift in PDN
10/23/2025 | Istvan Novak, SamtecArtificial intelligence (AI), together with machine learning (ML), is creating an unprecedented surge of computing and networking infrastructure needs. This, in turn, has dramatically increased the power consumption of computing and networking chips.
SEMICON Japan 2025 to Spotlight Sustainability in AI and Semiconductor Innovation
10/22/2025 | SEMISEMICON Japan 2025, the largest gathering of leaders from the microelectronics manufacturing supply chain in Japan, will bring together more than 1,200 exhibitors showcasing semiconductor solutions from December 17-19 at Tokyo Big Sight.
Zuken Announces ZIW Americas 2026 in Dallas
10/21/2025 | ZukenZuken USA, Inc., a global leader in electrical and electronic design automation, announced Zuken Innovation World (ZIW) Americas 2026, the company’s premier global conference dedicated to advancing the future of electrical and electronic product design. ZIW 2026 will be held June 9-11 in Dallas, Texas.
Keysight Completes Acquisition of Synopsys’ Optical Solutions Group and Ansys’ PowerArtist
10/17/2025 | Keysight Technologies, Inc.Keysight Technologies, Inc., announced the completion of its acquisitions of the Optical Solutions Group from Synopsys, Inc., and PowerArtist from Ansys, Inc.