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Signal Integrity

Browse our library of resources to learn more about pcb design and signal integrity.

What is Signal Integrity? xSignals in Altium Designer Signal Integrity Stimulus Design Rules Basics of Signal Integrity Analysis

Know the Impedance

Everything You Need To Know About Impedance Is understanding impedance really complicated? Expert Tuomas Heikkila will walk us through the basics of impedance. In this article, you will learn where impedance originated which will help you when designing your PCB or electronic projects. Read Article

How Important is your Microcontroller Clock Source

How Important is Your Microcontroller Clock Source? The type of clock signal you need to use for your microcontroller will depend mainly on the nature of the device it’s embedded in and its operating environment. Read Article

copper pour and via stitching

Copper Pour and Via Stitching: Do You Need Them in a PCB Layout? When is it appropriate to use copper pour or via stitching in your PCB layout? Read our guide on copper pour and how it can be used properly with via stitching. Read Article

SAP (Semi-additive PCB process): The Basics

SAP (Semi-additive PCB process): The Basics Expert Tara Dunn answers what are semi-additive PCB fabrication processes and what are the benefits? Read now and learn more about SAP. Read Article

what is signal integrity

What is Signal Integrity? Learn about the basics of signal integrity and how you can ensure your PCB layout complies with best practices for signal integrity. Read Article

ISM Bands Around the World

ISM Bands Around the World ISM bands (industrial, scientific, and medical) are parts of the RF (radio-frequency) spectrum reserved for general use by, as the name suggests, scientific, medical, and industrial devices. Their creation was in response to specific demands by these industries for access to the RF spectrum to perform functions without having to compete with the traditionally intensive users of RF, the communications, and defense sectors. The critical thing to Read Article

Choosing the Right Microphone for Embedded Applications

Choosing the Right Microphone for Embedded Applications If you need to capture sound waves for your electrical device to process, you'll need a microphone. However, microphones these days have become very advanced, and there are so many options to choose from. While there are relatively small dynamic microphones, they come with a broad range of options and technologies. They range from relatively simple and popular condenser-type microphones to state-of-the-art sound conversion solutions incorporating Read Article

Gibbs ringing

What Causes Gibbs Signal Ringing in High-speed Channel Simulations? Gibbs ringing is both a measurement artifact and a calculation artifact that arises in band-limited channels. Make sure you understand how this arises due to transform and convolution operations. Read Article

Serial Communications Protocols - CAN and LIN

Serial Communications Protocols - CAN and LIN In this article, Part 8 in our series of articles looking at different Serial Communication Protocols, we discuss the popular CAN and LIN protocols combined. Read Article

PCB routing

What is PCB Routing? Learn about PCB routing techniques and how to design traces to proper routing in any device. You can access the best PCB routing features in Altium Designer. Read Article

Wideband signal integrity

Wideband Signal Processing and Analysis in Ultra-high Speed PCB Design Wideband signal analysis may seem like black magic, but it does more than create pretty graphs. Read our introduction to wideband signal analysis to learn more. Read Article

Troubleshooting EMC from your Workbench

Troubleshooting EMC from Your Workbench EMC expert Ken Wyatt joins us in this episode to answer frequently asked EMC questions—a sneak peak to his EMC Book Series. Read Article

Serial Communications Protocols - Part Three: RS-232

Serial Communications Protocols - Part Three: RS-232 In this series of articles, we’re looking at some of the different types of Serial Communication Protocols available for transferring data between devices. The articles will cover a few of the more popular protocols and standards in use today, and at the end of this series, we will recap and compare the advantages and disadvantages of each. We hope this information will prove valuable next time you need to implement a serial communication bus in Read Article

Serial Communications Protocols - UART

Serial Communications Protocols - Part Two: UART In this article, we will be looking at the popular UART device. It’s not a communication protocol but rather the physical circuit used in microcontrollers or stand-alone ICs to transmit and receive serial data. It supports the series of articles we’ve produced to look at some of the different types of Serial Communication Protocols available. Serial communications are the perfect mechanism for transmitting information between devices such as Read Article

Serial Communications Protocols - Introduction

Serial Communications Protocols - Introduction In this series of articles, we will be looking at some of the different types of Serial Communication Protocols available to transfer information between microcontrollers, data-producing and data-processing peripherals, and other smart devices. The articles that follow this introduction to serial communications will cover some of the more popular protocols in common usage. At the end of this series, we will summarize the advantages and Read Article

50 Ohm impedance

The Mysterious 50 Ohm Impedance: Where It Came From and Why We Use It 50 Ohm impedance became the standard impedance used in RF transmission lines long ago, but it is still useful today and is a standard reference impedance used in test equipment. Read Article

Circuit Board Design

FR4 Dielectric Constant and Material Properties Wondering what is FR4? FR4 is by far the most popular set of PCB substrate materials. Here is how FR4 dielectric constant and your material properties will affect your next PCB. Read Article