2010 Issues

July 2010 Cover-

  • View the Digital Edition

     

FEATURES

COVER STORY
Practical Design of Differential Vias
A scalable, topology-based equivalent circuit model can accurately match via behavior to a bandwidth well above the application bandwidth, typically above 10 GHz. A look at a very simple way of modeling a differential via and translating its geometry into an equivalent circuit model. 
by Eric Bogatin, Bert Simonovich and Yazi Cao

DfF
Are Your PCB Data Unprepared?

It is great to have a fabricator that can provide its “secret sauce” to make the design work, but be ready to get locked into that supplier, because another fabricator’s recipe will be different. As a designer, is that a risk you want to take? 
by Jeff Champa

 

MONEY MATTERS

  • Global Sourcing
    China’s labor shortage.
    Tom Coghlan

  • ROI
    Hello? Anyone there?
    Peter Bigelow

 

TECH TALK

June 2010 Cover-

 

FEATURES

 

Cover Story

The Year of Staying Employed

The aging (graying, some say) of the printed circuit board design field continues, or so says our annual survey of the industry. What 400 designers have to say about their chances for survival in the era of automation and outsourcing.
By Chelsey Drysdale

SEA/NPI Awards

A pictorial look at some of the 2010 winners of the CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY Service Excellence Awards (SEA) for best-in-class customer service and the PCD&F/CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY New Product Introduction (NPI) Awards for the best new product during the past 12 months.

COLUMNS



FIRST PERSON  

Caveat Lector

Ride with Jeff.

Mike Buetow

Database

One designer’s winning pitch.

Pete Waddell

 

MONEY MATTERS

ROI

Competency confusion.

Peter Bigelow

 

TECH TALK

Final Finishes

No masking these changes.

Lenora Toscano

PCD&F May 2010 cover

 

FEATURES 

 

Cover Story

Frequency Loss Effect of Conductor Profile on the Insertion Loss, Phase Constant and Dispersion in Thin High Frequency Transmission Lines

Increasing conductor roughness alone increases the effective Dk in thin circuitry by up to 15%, while substantially increasing dispersion.

Allen F. Horn III, Ph.D., John W. Reynolds, Patricia A. LaFrance and James C. Rautio, Ph.D.  

RF Design

Choosing an RF Design Environment Flow

You can’t build a house without blueprints. So why do so many RF design flows try to build a board without a schematic?

by Abby Monaco  

CPCA Show Recap

Cautious Optimism in China

Exhibitors were cautious rather than shell-shocked, and even with a wobbly recovery underway, they have seen a marked increase in business.

by Matthew Holzmann  

Memory Interface Design

Memory Interface Speed Solutions

Higher performance requirements reduce timing margins on interfaces, thus imposing strict rules on board routing.

by Hal Katircioglu  

Apex Recap

New Year, New Outlook

An uptick in attendance on the floor overshadowed a lack of innovations in the booths.

By Mike Buetow and Chelsey Drysdale        

 

COLUMNS  

First Person  

Caveat Lector

EMS hot for LED.

Mike Buetow  

Database

Sayonara, electronics engineering?

Pete Waddell

 

Money Matters  

Sherman’s Market

Printed electronics: process revolution?

Randall Sherman  

ROI

Bad grades.

Peter Bigelow  

 

Tech Talk  

 

On the Forefront

Inside the iPad.

E. Jan Vardaman  

Designer’s Notebook

It’s the data, stupid!

Michael Dreyer         

View the Digital Edition

FEATURES

  • Process Improvement
    The DfM Continuum
    Design and manufacturing often are thought of as separate processes, with some interdependencies. But absent a feedback loop, development will be marred by unnecessary defects and re-spins.
    by John Isaac and Bruce Isbell

  • Signal Integrity
    Open 'Eyes' in the Frequency Domain
    Although final performance is measured in the time domain, a detour may be the faster route to a signal integrity solution.
    by Dr. Eric Bogatin

  • Materials Engineering
    Heat Transfer in LED Assembly
    LEDs may seem cool to the touch, but they all produce heat. So while they offer significant benefits over filament and fluorescent lighting, dissipating heat within an LED assembly involves the selection and use of thermally conductive and (usually) electrically insulating materials.
    by Chuck Neve

FIRST PERSON

  • Caveat Lector
    Toyota's painful lesson.
    Mike Buetow
  • Sherman's Market
    No more dips for chips.
    Sandra Winkler

  • Database
    Back to school.
    Pete Waddell

MONEY MATTERS

  • ROI
    Fixing process improvement.
    Peter Bigelow

  • Focus on Business
    Improve workers' lives, improve the bottom line.
    Susan Mucha

TECH TALK

  • Real World EMC
    Designing out radiated emissions.
    Dr. Eric Bogatin

  • Final Finishes
    Process flow and routine analysis.
    Lenora Toscano

  • Getting Lean
    Balancing tradeoffs of waste elimination.
    Ryan Wooten

  • Technical Abstracts
    In case you missed it.

 

DEPARTMENTS

Off the Shelf

PCD&F March 2010 cover

FEATURES

  • Impedance Control
    Accurate Impedance Control, Part II
    Choosing the right method for determining impedance control of multi-GHz or multi-Gb boards.
    by Istvan Nagy

  • Signal Integrity
    Designing PCBs with High-Speed Constraints
    SI rules must take into account signal quality, timing and crosstalk.
    by Patrick Carrier

  • Cover Story
    Could Printed Electronics Replace Traditional Electronics?
    Over the next 10 years, printed electronics will make gains in RFID, displays, packaging, ICs, and alternative energy. But a glorious future isn't set in stone.
    by Randall Sherman

  • CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY Top 50
    The Trials of 2009
    When it comes time to write the story of the EMS industry in 2009, foremost will be the effects of the recession. The subtext, however, will be the dramatic fall of Elcoteq, whose final chapter is still being written. Plus: The 50 largest EMS companies.
    by Mike Buetow

FIRST PERSON

  • Caveat Lector
    Tin drums beat louder.
    Mike Buetow
  • Database
    Scary thoughts on DfM.
    Pete Waddell

MONEY MATTERS

  • Global Sourcing
    Getting vertical.
    Rex Green

  • ROI
    Merger mania strikes again.
    Peter Bigelow

TECH TALK

  • Designer's Notebook
    Defining PDN impedance.
    Dr. Zhen Mu

  • On the Forefront
    Can Japan stay committed to R&D?
    E. Jan Vardaman

  • Tech Tips
    Component reliability for RF applications.
    ACI Technologies Inc.

  • Solar Technologies
    Frontside silver conductor line efficiency.
    Tom Falcon

 

DEPARTMENTS

Off the Shelf

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