PCB Technical Publications
Product Development Efficiency Through ECAD-MCAD Collaboration
Collaboration between mechanical designers (using MCAD tools) and PCB designers (using ECAD tools) is becoming a priority for many product development teams. Allowing the PCB designer and mechanical designers to view layouts, suggest and approve/reject changes, and view this information on their own tool is a large step forward in advancing this collaboration, with the ultimate goals being shorter design time with fewer re-spins. And, that makes for a healthy bottom line.
Designing RF, Analog and Digital on PCB
Passing the Test
With so many different part numbers running through a production facility, it can be difficult to know how well a process is running. One way that the IC manufacturers solve this issue is to measure specific coupons (test structures) on a parametric die that is placed on each wafer in addition to special parametric wafers. Probe stations can be set up at specific process steps to test these parametric coupons and dies to provide feedback as to whether the process is running in bounds.
Having a specific coupon that is sensitive to a specific process can signal a process problem before it hurts production. The accumulation of these process effects on design can be measured at final test and should correlate with a specific first-pass yield (FPY) model.
The coupon methodology can also be applied to PCB manufacturing. There are many parametric analysis and characterization coupons available for PCBs, forming an important part of a quality assessment process. These process coupons cover reliability, end-product, work-in-process, and process parameter evaluations.
Getting Started in HDI Fabrication
High-density interconnect (HDI) fabrication is the fastest growing segment of the printed circuit industry. From its simple start in 1985 for Hewlett-Packard's first 32-bit computer (the Finstrate) to today's large client servers with 36 sequentially laminated layers and stacked microvias, HDI/microvia technologies are the PCB architectures of the future. Smaller component pitches, larger ASICS and FPGAs with more I/O, embedded passives and higher frequencies with shrinking rise-times all require smaller PCB features, driving the need for HDI/microvia. This paper outlines the six simple processes in PCB fabrication that have to be improved in order to successfully build highly reliable HDI/microvia boards.
The conclusion of this paper emphasizes the business opportunities and challenges faced by management in starting and developing the HDI fabrication business including the engineering challenges of improving yields.
Applying Assertion-Based Formal Verification to Verification Hot Spots
Based on our experience helping many design teams deploy assertions and formal verification, we recommend deploying ABV (including formal model checking) on the most salient verification hot spots in a design, following a seven-step, formal verification planning process. By focusing ABV on verification hot spots, a design team can adopt ABV incrementally as they continue to use their simulation-based methodology. This has the added benefit of minimizing the risks involved with adopting a new methodology while maximizing the return-on-investment.
Leveraging FPGA in PCB System Designs: Optimizing Profit Margin
Any design project that leverages Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) to implement system designs has the opportunity to:
- Reduce total design cycle time by as much as 50%
- Minimize PCB manufacturing costs
- Optimize product profit margin
Early adopters of PCB Optimization technology have validated the concept that FPGA package flexibility can deliver substantial business benefits.
This white paper documents the impact of decisions made during the design of the FPGA-PCB interface, from the assignment of the PCB signal to the FPGA package pins through their effect on product profit margin.
Logical and Physical Design Reuse
Today's designs have become extremely complex and intricate, creating a need for software tools that support automation, maintain accuracy, and meet short design cycles.
Re-using previously designed circuitry has long been an option for resolving these challenges, but never one that was easy to implement. Software providers have made attempts at providing this capability, but they haven't always caught on. With new, more efficient options at hand, will customers see the value? Will they give it a try? Read about a methodology that can handle today's data-filled design content and still produce proper, reusable designs.