News & Updates
Blog
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A Brief Study of Stubs on a PCIe Connector
Stubs are an important topic in high-speed PCB design, and there is a longstanding guideline that stubs should always be removed from all vias on high-speed digital interconnects. While stubs are bad for high-speed lines, they do not always need to be removed. What is more important is to predict the loss profile and frequencies, and to floorplan appropriately to try and prevent such losses.
Blog
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PCB Layout Cleanup Before Manufacturing
Once you finish your placement and routing in your PCB layout, it can be tempting to wrap up the layout and send everything in directly to manufacturing. The reality is that the board may still need some work before it is considered finished. The cleanup you perform at the final stage of PCB layout will help you catch any outstanding errors that can't be programmed into your DRC engine, and it gives you a chance to add any outstanding details to the surface layers.
Blog
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Insulated Metal Substrates: Building an LED Panel
In this project we’ll be building a moderate sized LED panel on insulated metal substrate (IMS). This light panel has three different white balance High CRI LED types on it, warm, neutral and cool. By changing the brightness of the different white balances, the light from the panel can be adjusted to match other lighting, making it perfect for film use - but also creating perfect lighting for electronics work. As with all my projects, this LED panel is open source, you can find the Altium project files over on my GitHub released under the permissive MIT License.
Blog
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DFM in PCB Material Selection
Every design should begin with selecting the materials that will appear in the PCB stackup, as well as arranging layers in the stackup to support layout and routing. This section of our PCB manufacturing andc DFM crash course focuses on selecting the right materials for your PCB design. Materials should be selected given the particular design requirements outlined in your specifications.
Blog
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How to Start an FPGA PCB Layout For Your Embedded System
FPGAs come in quad or BGA packages that can be difficult to floorplan, especially with the high number of I/Os often implemented in these components. FPGAs offer a lot of advantages in terms of their reconfigurability, but they can require a lot of effort to layout and route without headaches. If you’ve never worked with an FPGA in your PCB layout, we have some guidelines that can help you get started.
Blog
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How to Get 3-port S-parameters From a 2-port VNA Measurement
S-parameters are fundamental quantities in signal integrity, and an ability to understand them from measurement or analysis is very important. If you have a 3-port network, like a power divider or circulator, it may appear that you must use a 3-port VNA to measure these S-parameters. It is always acceptable to measure between two ports, but you need to know what exactly it is you are measuring. In this article, we’ll look at the relationship between the true 3-port S-parameters with a 2-port measurement.
Blog
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A Day in the Life of the PCB Manufacturing Process
Before implementing design for manufacturing, it is important to understand the underlying process behind producing a physical PCB. Regardless of the various technologies present in each facility, a large majority of industry-leading manufacturers follow a specific set of steps to turn your design from a drawing in a CAD application into a physical board. In this article, we'll cover the basics that designers need to know as part of our crash course series on PCB manufacturing.
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Addressing Skew Sources in High Speed PCBs
If you compile a list of skew sources, you'll see that fiber weave-induced skew is only one entry on a long list of skew sources. We'll look at this list of possible skew sources below, and we'll see how they affect the operation of your PCB. From the list below, we'll see that some of these issues with skew are not simply solved by paying attention to the fiber weave construction in a PCB substrate.
On-Demand Webinar
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Advanced Topics in High-Speed Design
This track is for the engineer who understands high-speed design requirements and wants to learn design practices to help ensure signal integrity and EMC with fast digital protocols, mixed-signal boards, and high layer counts.
Blog
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Should Ground Be Placed Below Inductors in Switching Regulators?
We love answering questions from our readers and YouTube viewers, and one of the recent questions we received relates to EMI from switching elements in a switching regulator is "Should a cutout be placed below the inductor in a switching regulator circuit?". Despite the variations in inductors and their magnetic behavior, there are some general principles that can be used to judge the effects of placing ground near inductors in switching regulator circuits. We’ll look at some of these principles in this article
NEW
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Beyond the BOM: How Proactive Component Selection Is Transforming Workflows
Learn how proactive component selection helps you avoid supply chain risks, reduce costs, and design more reliably. Our new article outlines key strategies and shows how tools like Altium 365 support smarter part decisions.
NEW
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Power Integrity Issues?
Power problems can be hard to spot until it’s too late. See how easy it is to analyze your power nets, check voltage drops, and improve reliability with Power Analyzer by Keysight - all without leaving your design environment.
NEW
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How to Design High-Speed PCBs Without Signal Surprises
Signal issues can sneak in early and cost you later. Read our whitepaper to see how Signal Analyzer by Keysight (inside Altium Designer) helps you catch problems fast and design with confidence.
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Beyond Basic Part Selection: Using Supply Chain Data to Validate Choices
Learn how to enhance part selection by using real-time supply chain data. This article shows how integrating insights like availability and lifecycle status helps you make smarter, risk-aware design choices.
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Signal Mistakes Are Expensive
See how the Signal Analyzer by Keysight in Altium Designer lets you run signal integrity checks directly within your design environment. Read our article to learn how to effectively manage impedance, return paths, stackups, and more.
Blog
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Twice the Insight. One Seamless Simulation Bundle
Ensure power and signal integrity with the Keysight Bundle in Altium Designer. Catch issues early, reduce rework, and optimize your PCBs - all within one integrated environment featuring Signal & Power Analyzer.
Blog
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Preparing for Prototype: Final Component Validation
Final component validation is the last critical check before building a prototype, ensuring all parts are accurate, available, and viable. This article shows how Altium’s integrated tools—like SiliconExpert, Z2Data, Octopart, and BOM Portal—help teams avoid costly surprises and prepare with confidence.
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Getting Started with Harness Design in Altium Designer 25
Explore the essential steps and tools for Harness Design in Altium Designer 25, from initial setup to final documentation. The article highlights how the unified design environment streamlines the entire process, improving efficiency and project integration.
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The Future of PCB Design Starts Here
Altium Designer is constantly evolving, with powerful new features and updates on the way. Get an exclusive first look at what’s coming next—visit our Coming Soon page to stay up to date with the latest innovations.
Blog
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Simplify Harness-to-System Connections for Better PCB Design Outcomes
Struggling to keep harness and system designs in sync? In our brand-new article we explore how integrating PCB and harness design workflows can eliminate errors, improve collaboration, and accelerate your development process. Discover a smarter approach to connecting your harness to the system.
Blog
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The Crucial Balance: Cost, Quality, and Availability In Electronic Component Selection
Balancing cost, quality, and availability is key when selecting electronic components. This article explores how to make informed choices that meet design goals while managing supply chain and sourcing challenges.
Blog
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Wire Harness Failures: The Hidden Costs and Real-World Recalls That Could Have Been Prevented
Wire harness failures can lead to significant financial losses, production delays, and safety hazards. This article delves into real-world examples of such failures across industries and illustrates how modern CAD tools can help prevent these costly issues.
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Part Selection Fundamentals: Creating Resilient Component Requirements
Learn how to ensure electronic components meet the demands of harsh environments. This article explores key standards, testing protocols, and design considerations for building resilient systems that perform reliably under extreme conditions.
Blog
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Printed Electronics: The Future of Flexible and Cost-Effective Circuit Design
This article explores the rise of printed electronics as a lightweight, flexible, and cost-effective alternative to traditional PCB design. It highlights key benefits like reduced manufacturing costs, sustainability, and new design possibilities—especially in wearables, medical devices, and automotive applications.
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How to Choose the Best Requirements Management Tool for Electronics Development
Many electronics teams still rely on documents and spreadsheets for requirements management—leading to gaps, errors, and delays. Alexsander Tamari explores better tools to improve traceability, collaboration, and project outcomes.
Blog
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New Routing Possibilities with Ultra HDI
Explore how Ultra HDI technology is redefining PCB design. This article breaks down the benefits and manufacturing considerations of Ultra HDI, and how it enables next-level routing density and miniaturization in advanced electronics.
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