Design

This is the first article of a two-article series devoted to the return current distribution in a 2-layer FR-4 PCB microstrip line configuration with a solid reference plane.

Going back several decades, Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) design and layout checks that were done manually were laborious and time-consuming, let alone not confidently reliable.

Many years ago, the author experimented on a metal enclosure of one of his company’s main products. The experiment involved placing an electric field probe inside the empty metal enclosure (no electronics inside) and applying 10 V/m using the IEC 61000-4-3 radiated RF immunity test system.

The Standards Council of Canada (CSA) has published a new National Standard applicable to...

The FAA has published requirements that require testing for all battery devices that are a part of the aircraft itself.

The trend of progressively migrating both ESD and EMC immunity from the system/board to the component level is creating unprecedented challenges for the component ESD designer.

Many individual components in electrical and electronic systems and devices are integrated into systems that are required to function as a whole. Examples of such systems include large electric vehicles, fixed industrial installations, novel scientific products such as quantum computers, and more. There are two EMC-related aspects to consider: intra-system EMC and inter-system EMC. This article focuses on the intra-system EMC aspect while also considering the inter-system aspect.

It is a common misconception that designing an IC for system-level ESD requirements simply requires an increase in the capability of the ESD cells, which are already present for safe handling ESD requirements, like Human Body Model (HBM).

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is moving forward with its efforts to...

Most EMI issues are caused by a resonance that is excited somewhere in the system. It may be a resonance of a cable acting as an antenna or a heatsink energized by the power electronics switches bolted to it, becoming a good radiator. In this article, we look at the indicators that signal the presence of structural resonances and provide techniques for fixing the EMI issues. Practical case studies are presented to demonstrate the techniques.