-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueLevel Up Your Design Skills
This month, our contributors discuss the PCB design classes available at IPC APEX EXPO 2024. As they explain, these courses cover everything from the basics of design through avoiding over-constraining high-speed boards, and so much more!
Opportunities and Challenges
In this issue, our expert contributors discuss the many opportunities and challenges in the PCB design community, and what can be done to grow the numbers of PCB designers—and design instructors.
Embedded Design Techniques
Our expert contributors provide the knowledge this month that designers need to be aware of to make intelligent, educated decisions about embedded design. Many design and manufacturing hurdles can trip up designers who are new to this technology.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
Shrinking Geometries: Back to Fundamentals to Fight EMI
February 23, 2023 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineEstimated reading time: 1 minute
When silicon shrinks, a variety of things can happen—some positive, some negative. But for PCB designers, the fight against EMI becomes more complex as signal channels shrink and rise times increase.
Dan Beeker is technical director at NXP Semiconductors, a veteran design engineer, and an instructor who has spent years helping students and customers battle EMI through building a better understanding of electromagnetic fields and field theory. In this interview, Dan explains what happens when silicon shrinks, how feature size controls signal speed, and why this marks the perfect time to return to the fundamentals of physics and field theory.
Andy Shaughnessy: Shrinking silicon is increasingly causing EMI issues for PCB designers and EEs. What sort of problems does shrinking silicon cause?
Dan Beeker: Smaller device geometries and higher current switching capabilities have thrust us all into the world of RF, HF, UHF, and microwave energy management. Rise times on even the lowest-tech devices now exhibit gigahertz impact. These changes directly impact product functionality and reliability. When IC technology was described as a percent of shrink from integer design rules, a circuit-based approach was usually close enough. Now that IC technology is described in nanometers, that traditional approach completely falls apart. An EM field, physics-based approach is essential.
To make things worse, EMC standards have changed; we now have lower and higher frequency compliance requirements, much lower emissions levels allowed, and greater immunity required. The playing field and the equipment have completely changed. This really is a brand-new game. The challenges are not only about providing adequate power to the devices, but also managing the output signals. The smaller the transistor, the faster it turns on, and the bigger the impact it has on EMC and signal integrity.
To read this entire interview, which appeared in the February 2023 issue of Design007 Magazine, click here.
Suggested Items
Septentrio Expands UAV Ecosystem for Reliable GNSS Positioning
04/22/2024 | SeptentrioSeptentrio, a leader in high-precision GNSS* positioning solutions, is closely working with several major drone solutions providers including 3DR, Holybro, ARK Electronics and Systork, which is resulting in various new products that allow easier prototyping or integration of the mosaic™ GNSS receiver into UAVs.
The Pulse: Drilling Down on Documentation
04/18/2024 | Martyn Gaudion -- Column: The PulseHow did a product aimed at signal integrity end up being more about documentation? For a little backstory, the Polar team has an unspoken “no business speak” rule at certain times. So, why is this column titled “Drilling Down?” I find it fascinating when a company sets off in one direction, but customers steer it in another. That’s what has happened here as customers took a product down a fork in the road we couldn’t predict. Your destination isn’t always where you initially set off to go, and that’s how we got to our subject of drills and drill documentation.
Signal Integrity Expert Donald Telian to Teach 'Signal Integrity, In Practice' Masterclass Globally
04/17/2024 | PRLOGDonald Telian and The EEcosystem announce the global tour of "Signal Integrity, In Practice," a groundbreaking LIVE masterclass designed to equip hardware engineers with essential skills for solving Signal Integrity (SI) challenges in today's fast-paced technological landscape.
Embedded World 2024: Rohde & Schwarz Presents its Cutting-edge Test Solutions for Embedded Systems
03/27/2024 | Rohde & SchwarzEmbedded systems are the foundation of today’s electronic devices, spanning sectors as diverse as consumer electronics, telecommunications, industrial, medical, automotive and aerospace applications.
Reassessing Surface Finish Performance for Next-gen Technology, Part 2
03/04/2024 | Frank Xu, PhD and Martin Bunce of MacDermid Alpha, and John Coonrod of Rogers Corp.The introduction of 5G/6G has created a growing demand for faster rates of data transfer and operation at higher frequencies, pushing signals to travel toward the outer edges of conductors. As a result, the surface finish applied over the copper circuitry is now gaining more attention.