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Breaking High-speed Material Constraints
Do you need specialty materials for your high-speed designs? Maybe not. Improvements in resins mean designers of high-speed boards can sometimes use traditional laminate systems. Learn more in this issue.
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February 2023 Issue of Design007 Magazine Available Now
February 8, 2023 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamEstimated reading time: Less than a minute
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Shrinking Silicon: A Warp Speed Facilitator
As we all learned by watching Star Trek, a lot of crazy things can happen at warp speed. There’s just no room for error at warp speed. Now, many PCB designers are dealing with increasing signal speeds and rise times, and a parliament of other effects—some positive, some negative—thanks to shrinking silicon. Not quite warp speed, but a lot of unpredictable things can happen when the die gets tiny.
So, in this issue, our expert contributors discuss the causes and effects of silicon shrinkage, including how to better manage EM strategies and signal integrity, as signal speeds and rise times continue their trek toward warp speed.
Suggested Items
Trouble in Your Tank: Materials for PWB Fabrication—Drillability and Metallization
07/16/2024 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankLaminate materials are the building blocks on which printed circuit boards are manufactured. Circuit board designers rely on the critical electrical properties of the materials to design the interconnects, and with the drive toward IoT (internet of things), autonomous driving, and virtual and augmented reality, material properties take on a very high level of importance.
UHDI Fundamentals: UHDI for RF Microwave Applications
07/16/2024 | Anaya Vardya, American Standard CircuitsUltra high-density interconnect (UHDI) technology has significant potential for RF (radio frequency) microwave applications. Its advantages lie in its ability to provide high-density routing and integration, which are crucial for complex RF circuits. Here are three key UHDI benefits in RF microwave applications:
Wild River Technology's ISI-USB4 Now Supports USB 4.0 Version 2 and DisplayPort 2.1
06/27/2024 | Wild River TechnologyWild River Technology (WRT), the leading supplier of signal integrity measurement and optimization test fixtures for high-speed channels at data rates of up to 25G announced today the availability of a new inter-symbol interference (ISI) loss modeling capability. The ISI-USB4 Advanced Loss Modeling Platform Test Card Set delivers comprehensive support for demanding 25G PAM4 designs.
Beyond Design: Termination Planning
06/24/2024 | Barry Olney -- Column: Beyond DesignThe characteristic impedance of a transmission refers to the impedance seen by a driver looking down an infinitely long trace. Interestingly, the characteristic impedance is independent of trace length. It’s a measure of the ratio of inductance to capacitance at any point along the trace. Therefore, while trace length matters for signal propagation delay, it doesn’t directly impact characteristic impedance. When a transmission line is perfectly matched to the driver and load, the signals propagating electromagnetic (EM) energy are totally absorbed by the load. This is the perfect scenario that all electronics designers strive for. However, this is rarely the case, and reflections do occur whenever the impedance of the transmission line changes along its length.
Overconstrain? Underconstrain? Selecting Materials for High-speed Designs
06/06/2024 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineWhen selecting materials for a high-speed design, you need to be very familiar with the materials’ electrical characteristics, as well as the requirements of the PCB you’re designing. There are myriad details that need to be considered during the material selection process, and missing one iota can lead to your job being put on hold. We asked Stephen Chavez, principal technical product marketing manager at Siemens, to share his thoughts on material selection for high-speed designs. Steph discusses material constraints, stackups, and the cut-off point when a “traditional” laminate will (and won’t) work for a high-speed board.