Latest Articles

Reduce Board Skyline With Solid Cavity Design

With the increasing shrinkage of modern electronics in both board size and product volume, it’s becoming more difficult to mount components to the PCB surface and still meet volumetric requirements. To avoid chip-on-board (COB) processing, board cavities can help mitigate the Z-axis skyline volumetric issues and allow for components that would otherwise not fit within the skyline to be used.

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

This week’s must-reads follow the trend toward iterative and ongoing improvements and advancements. The must-know news this week includes coverage of SEMICON (based on reader interest), updates on the EU’s Chips Act and ongoing advocacy for the printed circuits sector, design tips from an aerospace engineer, and a PCB fabrication merger.

RF Antenna Design on the Bleeding Edge

At SMTA Atlanta Tech Expo and Forum, I met with PCB designer Albert Gaines, owner of HiGain Design Services. Albert has been working on some really interesting, fragmented aperture antenna designs, and some of this stuff is really pushing the limits. Albert and I discussed his work with RF, the differences between COTS and custom antennas, and his efforts to educate engineers about what they can and can’t do.

Designing Aerospace PCBs: A Galaxy of Challenges

Jeffrey Boye designs aerospace PCBs at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. After a decade or so at the APL, some of his boards are currently floating in space. Jeffrey recently took a class with IPC instructor Kris Moyer titled “PCB Design for Military and Aerospace Applications.” As Jeffrey explains in this interview, this exhaustive class covered everything from high-reliability DFM techniques to Paschen’s curves, which help engineers understand and predict how a high-voltage signal travels in different atmospheres. He also discusses some of the “wacky” projects that he’s worked on at the APL, and the need to communicate with fabricators early on with aerospace applications.

Mark Thompson's Biggest Problems With PCB Designs

What are the top problems I see with PCB design? From where I sit now on the assembly side, one of my biggest concerns related to PCB design is the lack of uniform part markings on the Gerber or ODB++ data, specifically the way customers reference diodes. We would prefer either an “A” depicting the anode side or a “C” or “K” for the cathode side. Many customers simply use either a line or a dot, which requires us to contact them to clarify which side is the cathode and which side is the anode.

Major U.S. Holiday Today: Independence Day

Today marks the 247th Independence Day of the United States of America. Also known as the Fourth of July, this day commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress, as well as the declaration by the Congress that the American colonies are free and independent states.

What Are Hiring Managers Looking For?

Paul Farquhar recently took a few PCB design classes from John Watson, who doubles as a Palomar College professor when he’s not working at Altium. John teaches classes on basic and advanced PCB design, and he works to help students land jobs afterward. I asked Paul to discuss what he learned in John’s classes, as well as where he hopes to work afterward and how John and the college are working with industry to provide trained designers for the many open PCB designer positions.

Design Challenges: From The Assembler’s Viewpoint

Fabricators are fairly vocal about the design issues that they encounter, especially with brand-new customers. They are, after all, the next step in the process. But we don’t hear as much about design issues from EMS providers. This month, we asked experts from the PCB assembly segment to share their thoughts about design challenges that affect technologists on the EMS side.

Are You Still Over-materializing?

During the recent IEEE IMS2023 Exhibition in San Diego, we caught up with James Hofer, general manager of Accurate Circuit Engineering (ACE). The company is a prototype manufacturer of bare printed circuit boards that specializes in high-mix, low volume with an emphasis on RF, microwave, and antennas. A few years ago, we talked to James about the over-materialization of boards. In this recent discussion, we wanted to know if anything has changed regarding materials and approach. James also shares his thoughts on the changes in the design community.

Isola Changing With the Times

Changing market conditions require changes in approach. I-Connect007’s Barry Matties and Nolan Johnson speak with Isola’s Travis Kelly, Sean Mirshafiei, and Kirk Thompson about Isola’s recent responses to market conditions. In this interview, Kelly, Mirshafiei and Thompson outline recent changes to Isola senior leadership, optimizing manufacturing to meet the needs of the global market, and the strategic importance of advanced packaging to the global economy, and to the U.S., in particular.

EIPC Summer Conference 2023: Day 1 Review

Mid-morning on June 15 in Munich, after the conclusion of an informative and thought-provoking keynote session, the EIPC Summer Conference got under way with a series of presentations on Smart manufacturing, introduced and moderated by EIPC board member Dr. Michele Stampanoni, vice president strategic sales and business development at Cicor Group.

Altium 365 GovCloud Offers Increased Security

Altium recently launched Altium 365 GovCloud, a dedicated platform accessible only to—and managed solely by—U.S. persons. The company says that GovCloud can help customers to be in compliance with ITAR, EAR, and other requirements. I spoke with Bruno Blasigh, Director of Cloud Security for Altium 365, about the new platform, how it functions, and how GovCloud can help to keep foreign entities from accessing your data.

Reassessing Surface Finish Performance for Next-gen Technology, Part 1

Over the years, various surface finishes have been successfully utilized, namely organic solderability preservative (OSP), immersion silver (ImAg), immersion tin (ImSn), electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG), and electroless nickel electroless palladium immersion gold (ENEPIG), as solderable finishes for PCB and package substrates. All these surface finishes have their pros and cons, with no single finish being suited to all applications. As system designers continue to respond to new performance demands, it can be noted that ENIG/ENEPIG finishes have endured as a leading choice in many advanced applications where reliability is prioritized over cost.

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

June 21 marked the first official day of summer, and it’s the longest day of the year. I’m wearing by best Hawaiian shirt right now. But we’ve been too busy to hit the beach yet. There’s a lot going on in our industry right now. In this week’s Top 5, we have our coverage of the recent SMTA Oregon Expo & Tech Forum, a show that drew a good crowd of technologists.

Rigid-flex, Rigidized Flex, or Hybrid Flex?

In a recent interview with Design007 Magazine managing editor Andy Shaughnessy, he asked me about rigid-flex and its new popularity. This seems like a perfect opportunity to dig into the topic and discuss the differentiation between rigid-flex, rigidized flex, and what I am calling a hybrid flex.

PCB Design Challenges—From the Fabricator’s Viewpoint

If you’re a fabricator, chances are you have a few things to say about at least a few of the PCB designs that make their way through your shop. I guarantee that you have several well-worn stories about designs that made you scratch your head and think, “Hmmmm.” So, in this section, we asked PCB fabrication experts to share their thoughts about challenges that PCB designers need to more thoroughly understand. Do you see yourself on either side of these issues?

It’s a Team Effort: Final Episode in Sustainability Series Out Now

Available on I-007e and Spotify, Episode 6 of I-Connect007’s podcast, On the Line with… features an interview with Siemens’ Jonathan Fromm, product owner in predictive analytics, who introduces us to the “eight R’s” of sustainability. Fromm also draws parallels between the idea of thinking globally and the act of crafting holistic sustainability initiatives.

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

It’s always interesting to see what themes emerge from reader interest in our news coverage over the past seven days. This week, there are two: making plans and Southeast Asia. Our curated list of must-read content includes planning for the following items: new courses from IPC, a new listing on the NYSE, a new manufacturing facility for materials in Southeast Asia, brand-new inspection equipment solutions for SEMICON West, and new air traffic management systems in Indonesia.

Design Problems: From the Designers’ Viewpoint

It seems like everyone has something to say about PCB designers and the way they do their jobs. Everyone involved in the process likes to chime in with advice for the front-end folks. But what do designers think about their segment of the industry? This month, we asked PCB designers and design engineers to discuss their biggest pain points.

An Exclusive Review of the Institute of Circuit Technology’s Annual Symposium

After a long crawl through heavy traffic on the M42 motorway, it was a great relief to exit at Junction 6 and arrive at the National Conference Centre for the 2023 Annual Symposium of the Institute of Circuit Technology on June 6. The conference center is co-located with the historic National Motorcycle Museum and situated in the heart of the UK midlands, a stone’s throw from Birmingham International Airport. The delegates were welcomed by technical director Bill Wilkie.

IEEE IMS Show: A High-Speed Designer’s Paradise

The IEEE International Microwave Symposium is underway this week at the San Diego Convention Center, and the I-Connect007 team is on site for the opening of the exposition. For a PCB designer or design engineer, virtually all the sources for board raw materials were present on the show floor: semiconductors, board material suppliers, fabricators, design bureaus, design tool vendors, EMS equipment manufacturers, solder, and more.

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

It’s summertime, but the industry is staying pretty busy. This week, we have news about our industry putting pressure on our elected officials to provide funding for U.S. companies under the CHIPS Act, and a counterfeit parts symposium presented by SMTA in Maryland next month. We also bring you articles about ultra HDI design and material selection, and our most recent On the Line with… podcast with Zac Elliott of Siemens.

DFM 101: Cost Driver Summary

One of the biggest challenges facing PCB designers is not understanding the cost drivers in the PCB manufacturing process. We will wrap up this DFM series with a summary of cost drivers that impact delivery, quality and reliability. It is categorized by low-, medium-, and high-cost adders.

Slash Sheets: Don’t Fall Into the Trap

Slash sheets can be confusing, and this is a big topic, so let’s start big and drill down from there. Here’s the big picture regarding slash sheet references: They were designed to provide handy groupings of PCB materials (laminates, polyimides, etc.) that go into a stackup. These groupings are designed around mechanical characteristics to provide insight for PCB fabricators to identify similar laminates with similar properties.

Sustainability in Logistics Discussion Continues

Episode 5 of I-Connect007’s podcast, On the Line with… features an interview with Zac Elliot, Siemens technical marketing engineer, who discusses sustainability in logistics internal to the factory. Listeners will hear how ineffective logistics create wasted effort in the form of ineffective materials transfers, or increasing line down-time when materials are not flowing to the line properly.

Slash Sheets and Material Selection

Doug Sober helped pioneer the development of IPC’s first slash sheets in 1996 for IPC-4101, Specification for Base Materials for Rigid and Multilayer Printed Boards and we asked him to discuss slash sheets—what they are, what they are not, and why PCB designers might benefit from an IPC materials guide developed specifically for designers.

Sustainability in Logistics: Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

Episode 4 of I-Connect007’s new podcast, On the Line with… features an interview with Christian Wendt, marketing and communications department head at Siemens Digital Logistics. Wendt discusses the most obvious area of concern for logistics sustainability: reduction of the carbon footprint.

Memorial Day: A Time for Remembrance

Today is the Memorial Day federal holiday in the United States. Observed on the last Monday in May, the day is set aside to honor and mourn U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. The holiday’s roots trace back to remembrance of the soldiers on both sides of the U.S. Civil War.

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

It’s been a busy week here at I-Connect007, an even busier week for PCB designers and manufacturers. This week, we published a variety of articles and news items. In this week’s wrap-up, we have an interview with Rex Rozario that is basically a historical look at the birth of commercial PCB manufacturing, and his involvement with the Rolling Stones in their early days. Then we bring you a look at trends in freight costs, which are—fortunately—heading southward right now.

Knowledge: At the Heart of Great Customer Service

David Thomas, master IPC trainer at EPTAC, says that the more you understand the work and technology that go into your processes and products, the better you can serve your customers. That includes knowing the basics.

Selecting Flex Materials: Do Your Homework

While the layout of the circuit gives us much of the electrical characteristics of the design, your choice of materials can affect the mechanical and electrical characteristics of the circuit. Material choices affect not only the design of the circuit for its environment, but also the manufacturing and assembly processes. While the layout of the circuit gives us much of the electrical characteristics of the design, your choice of materials can affect the mechanical and electrical characteristics of the circuit.

Stop Over-specifying Your Materials

Columnist Kelly Dack has had a pretty wide range of experiences. As a PCB designer, he has sat behind the desk at an NPI company, an OEM, a fabricator, and now an EMS provider. We asked him to share a few thoughts on the materials selection process and how it could be improved.

Mark Laing Talks ‘Sustainability in Manufacturing’

Now available on Spotify, Episode 3 of I-Connect007’s new podcast, On the Line with… features an interview with Mark Laing, business development manager for digital industries software at Siemens. Laing discusses the role of electronics in achieving sustainability. Not only does the electronics industry have a primary role to play here, but it also contributes by creating products which enable other industries to monitor and optimize their sustainability practices.

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

This week, our must-reads include reporting on the new PCB support legislation, now submitted to the U.S. House of Representatives; financial results from two Tier 1 manufacturers, which readers read quite thoroughly; ESG in Asia Pacific; new features from Altium; global sourcing; and a “How I got here” interview with an up and coming industry expert.

NCAB Advocates for Advanced Technologies

At the SMTA Atlanta Expo and Tech Forum, I spoke with NCAB Group Field Application Engineer Ramon Roche, who gave a presentation at the show titled, “Technical Trends in the Global PCB Industry.” Ramon and I discussed his presentation, the emerging technologies that have NCAB’s focus over the next few years, and why semi-additive processes may be the key to succeeding with ultra HDI technology.

Guru & Geezer: A Celebration of the Life of Martin Cotton

This last weekend, industry guru and dear friend to many, Martin Cotton passed away. He was one of the first people I worked with in the electronics industry when I joined Toptec Design to learn to layout PCBs. He was a bit of a rock star to many PCB designers, myself included. He was known to be among the best in his field, if not the best, and went on to be one of the most influential and innovative people in the industry over a long and distinguished career. He will be hugely missed by his family and by his numerous friends in and out of the electronics industry.

Sustainability Podcast: Episode 2 'Sustainability Through Cloud Applications' Now Available

Now available on Spotify, Episode 2 of I-Connect007’s new podcast, On the Line with… features an interview with Susan Kayesar of Siemens. Kayesar addresses cloud applications and sustainability, as well as some key, new best practices that emerge from using a cloud-based platform for business operations software systems.

Ryan’s Hope: From Cop to CAD

I recently ran into Ryan Miller of NCAB Group at SMTA Atlanta. Ryan is a field application engineer and a columnist for Design007 Magazine who joined NCAB last year. In this interview, Ryan discusses his path from Air Force Security Forces to design engineer, and he outlines what he plans to accomplish at NCAB.

May 17 Webinar: The Economic Impact of Altium 365

I recently spoke with Fabian Winkler, product marketing manager for Altium 365. He and guest speaker Casey Sirotnak of Forrester are co-hosting a free webinar on May 17 titled “Unveil the Total Economic Impact of Altium 365.” The webinar will include data from a Forrester case study that examined the economic benefits of using the Altium 365 environment, such as the number of hours saved per designer per year. I asked Fabian to discuss the focus of the webinar, who should attend, and some of the benefits of this environment that allows ECAD and MCAD engineers to collaborate seamlessly.

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

This week’s must-reads contains a veritable potpourri of information from around the industry. We have a Pete Starkey review of the latest EIPC webinar on ultra HDI and thin film resistors, an interview with the founder of an electronics trade school in Texas, and an update from PCBAA about their lobbying efforts in Washington. We also have news about our brand-new podcast, or “pod,” as the kids say, and a column about the wisdom of Don Draper that just might serve technologists and managers well. Read on, folks!

NextFlex Calls for 3D Imaging Technology Proposals

Nolan Johnson talks with Scott Miller about a special call for proposals which NextFlex currently has open to explore methods to dewarp 3D scans of physical boards to enable multi-image scans to be stitched together. There is the possibility of funding for viable proposals. Deadline is May 15, 2023.

EIPC Review: Ultra-high-density Interconnects, Thin-film Resistor Materials

It’s been a little while since I first had the opportunity to review an EIPC Technical Snapshot webinar. This excellent series began in October 2020 when our industry was besieged by the COVID-19 pandemic. It has continued successfully as restrictions have lifted and provides an effective channel for the efficient sharing of relevant knowledge that complements the traditional live conferences. The 20th in the series, in December 2022, focused on environmental issues impacting the electronics industry. In early February, EIPC held its live Winter Conference in Lyon and now, by popular demand, the 21st Technical Snapshot fills a slot before the Summer Conference scheduled for mid-June in Munich.

I-Connect007 Launches 'On the Line with...' Podcast with Series on Sustainability

Expanding its avenues of content delivery, I-Connect007 is excited to announce the launch of our latest educational product, On the Line with.., available on Spotify, Apple and all the major podcast platforms. In this podcast, we speak with industry experts to get the latest insights and perspectives on the most relevant topics in the electronics industry today.

May 2023 Issue of Design007 Magazine Available Now

As you’ll see in this month’s issue of Design007 Magazine, slash sheets such as IPC-4101/126 were never meant to be used by designers when comparing PCB laminates. These documents were created to facilitate communication between purchasing and customer service departments. You could say that slash sheets are made for administrative purposes, not engineering.

DownStream Discusses Rigid-flex and DFM Trends

I recently sat down with Joe Clark, founder, and Ray Fugitt, technical marketing manager, of DownStream Technologies to discuss trends in tool design and manufacturing, including rigid-flex design and refreshed graphical user interfaces (GUI).

Electronic System Design Industry Logs $3.9B in Revenue in Q4 2022

Electronic System Design (ESD) industry revenue increased 11.3% from $3,468.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2021 to $3,858.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022, the ESD Alliance, a SEMI Technology Community, announced in its latest Electronic Design Market Data (EDMD) report.

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

In this week’s must-reads, we have coverage of NAMM 2023 and SMTA Atlanta, plus some tips for traditional PCB designers who are entering the RF design space, where designers have to master ideas like antenna tuning. We also have some news about March PCB sales, as well as a great conversation with Ventec’s Frank Lorentz, who explains how to set up an onboarding process that converts new hires into happy, long-term employees.

RF Antenna Design and Layout Tips for Your PCB

These days, it’s hard to think of a consumer product that doesn’t contain an antenna. Even my garage door opener can connect to my phone via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Each time a new RF antenna gets added to a PCB layout, it can create a new headache for RF designers, especially as analog design skills start to become critical again. With so many RF capabilities being added to new PCBs, how can designers ensure the signals in their system are not corrupted and signal integrity is preserved?

Simplifying Simulation and Analysis

Simulation has always been a critical step in the design process, and it’s only become more critical as design methodologies have become more complex. Gone are the days when simulation meant a simple logic simulation of your circuit, or a basic SPICE run to check signal waveforms. The simulation complexities that are required often fall “above the paygrade” of all but the most experienced members of a hardware design team. So how do you keep simulation from becoming a design bottleneck?

RF and Wireless Design Means Fighting Interference, Loss

Keysight EDA has been in the RF and microwave design industry for decades. We asked How-Siang Yap, product manager for Keysight EDA’s RF and microwave software tools, to share his thoughts on RF design tips and techniques, and how designing boards at RF speeds compares with designing PCBs at slower speeds. As he explains, much of RF design involves battling interference and loss.

NAMM 2023: It’s All About That Bass

The use of AI in the music industry seems only natural. For example, if you’re trying to create a specific sound, rhythm, mix of instruments, or volume level, you’d typically be in front of a series of mixers and controls, making tweaks and adjustments. If you’re trying to create a piece of music that is similar to one you already have, AI can do that for you. Just give it some basic instructions and let it go to work.

RF and Wireless PCB Design

RF is becoming almost ubiquitous; how many devices in your home contain at least one antenna? Automotive, aerospace, defense, and IoT segments are all pushing the envelope for wireless communication. But designing an RF PCB is a lot different than designing typical boards.

RF PCB Design: The Devil’s in the Details

Altium’s John Watson is a longtime designer and design instructor, not to mention a Design007 columnist. He’s been dealing with RF issues for years; his previous employer, Legrand, is one of the pioneers in smart lighting and data center solutions. John discusses the differences between designing RF and “typical” PCBs, how to avoid the missteps and miscues that can bedevil new RF designers, and why the tiniest details can make or break an RF design.

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

How was your week? We’ve been pretty busy ourselves, bringing you coverage of the SMTA Expo & Tech Forum in Boise, Idaho. Tabletops shows like this offer a great value during the spring, in between the bigger shows like IPC APEX EXPO and SMTA International. In fact, SMTA schedules approximately 30 regional shows around the United States and abroad.

DFM Analysis for Flex and Rigid-flex Design, Part 1

Flex and rigid-flex PCB constructions are not new concepts. It has become commonplace as engineers look for alternative circuit packaging for ever-shrinking electronic products. A flat, one-sheet schematic for a straight ribbon cable is analogous to its physical flat substrate. A flat, multi-sheet schematic that details circuitry for a rigid-flex design bears little visual resemblance to its three-dimensional, variable material rigid-flex assembly. However, in both schematic examples, schematic-based analysis tools are applied equally. This same truth also applies to common FR-4-based two-layer or multilayer PCBs.

Design for Cost in Real-time

When do you first start thinking about the selling price of your new product? It’s impossible to avoid the question of what the price will be. The worst answer is: “I don’t know, let’s see after the first samples.” Let’s say the product’s selling price is $49; then the manufacturing cost will be $20. During each design change, the manufacturing cost should be recalculated to make sure the product is still competitive. This means you should involve people from both the development and cost calculation teams. This circle will be repeated until the final design is released, and the final calculation is done.

DFM 101: Final Finish Design Guidelines

One of the biggest challenges facing PCB designers is not understanding the cost drivers in the PCB manufacturing process. There are many design considerations that need to be factored into any decision of which final finish to select for a particular application. We will cover these in this final installment of final finish DFM. Understanding the cost drivers in PCB fabrication and early engagement between the designer and the fabricator are crucial elements that lead to cost-effective design success.

Better Engineering Through Artificial Intelligence

At DesignCon 2023, I spoke with Cadence Design Systems’ Brad Griffin about artificial intelligence and machine learning as engineering aids for signal and power integrity optimization. Brad makes the case that artificial intelligence methods, when added to optimizing tools in the design flow, can help engineers to evaluate a larger number of potential solutions, and zero in on more highly optimized solutions than they may have found on their own.

IPC Design Competition Wrap-up

The IPC Design Competition took place during IPC APEX EXPO 2023, with five finalists competing—a far cry from the original 49 entries last fall. After the competition was over, we spoke with Kris Moyer, the IPC instructor who created the design used in the competition and served as a design advisor and judge for the event. We asked Kris to give us a quick wrap-up of the competition, as well as his thoughts on this year’s design, which none of the finalists completed.

Embedding Know-how Into Automation

Michael Ford, senior director of emerging industry strategy for Aegis Software, speaks with Barry Matties on the topic of tribal knowledge, its pros and cons, and its role in our industry. While it may be useful if your team never changes, the inevitability of a person’s career progression means they take their knowledge with them. Michael brings his nuanced perspective to the conversation.
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