News & Updates
Blog
•
When to Use Tented Vias in Your PCB Layout
There are some guidelines I see many designers implement as a standard practice, often without thinking about it. Some of these practices are misunderstood or implemented without best practices. Others are implemented without thinking about the potential problems. One of these is the use of tented vias, which is sometimes implemented in a PCB layout by default. Is this always the right practice?
Blog
•
How to Impedance Match and Terminate Capacitive Loads
The idea of a purely capacitive load is something of a fallacy. Yes, capacitors exist, but all capacitors are non-ideal, and it is this deviation from a theoretical capacitance that determines how to impedance match a load that exhibits capacitive behavior. Let’s take a look at this important aspect of interconnect design and see what it really means to terminate a capacitive load.
Blog
•
Using Altium 365 Over Your Vanilla Version Control System
There are all sorts of version control systems out there that people have been using with their PCB design software. As discussed in Why Use a Version Control System, we looked at different options ranging for local hard drive storage to sophisticated online revisioning systems. In this article we will be reviewing the differences between a standard VCS and Altium 365.
Blog
•
Why Use a Version Control System in PCB Design
Version Control Systems (VCS) have been around for many decades within the software world but can be surprisingly new to some folks in the electronics design industry. This article will cover what a VCS is, what it does, and why you should be using one for your PCB design projects.
Blog
•
Meeting Standards: IPC 6012 Class 3 Annular Ring
Designers often conflate leftover annular ring and pad sizes - they need to place a sufficiently large pad size on the surface layer to ensure that the annular ring that is leftover during fabrication will be large enough. As long as the annular ring is sufficiently large, the drill hit will not be considered defective and the board will have passed inspection. In this article, I'll discuss the limits on IPC-6012 Class 3 annular rings as these are a standard fabrication requirement for high-reliability rigid PCBs.
Blog
•
Decoding PCB Fabrication Notes
Sending a board out for fabrication is an exciting and nerve-wracking moment. Why not just give your fabricator your design files and let them figure it out? There are a few reasons for this, but it means the responsibility comes back to you as the designer to produce manufacturing files and documentation for your PCB. It’s actually quite simple if you have the right design tools. We’ll look at how you can do this inside your PCB layout and how this will help you quickly generate data for your manufacturer.
Blog
•
Design Basics for HDI and the HDI PCB Manufacturing Process
As the world of technology has evolved, so has the need to pack more capabilities into smaller packages. PCBs designed using high-density interconnect techniques tend to be smaller as more components are packed in a smaller space. An HDI PCB uses blind, buried, and micro vias, vias in pads, and very thin traces to pack more components into a smaller area. We’ll show you the design basics for HDI and how Altium Designer® can help you create a powerful HDI PCB.
Blog
•
Is It Printed or a Component? All About PCB Test Points
Test points in your electronic assembly will give you a location to access components and take important measurements to verify functionality. If you’ve never used a test point or you’re not sure if you need test points, keep reading to see what options you have for test point usage in your PCB layout.
Blog
•
How to Design to a Differential Impedance Specification
The concept and implementation of differential impedance are both sometimes misunderstood. In addition, the design of a channel to reach a specific differential impedance is often done in a haphazard way. The very concept of differential impedance is something of a mathematical construct that doesn’t fully capture the behavior of each signal in a differential trace. Keep reading to see a bit more depth on how to design to a differential impedance spec and exactly what it means for your design.
Blog
•
The Main Advantages when using Draftsman to Create a Component Mounting Drawing
Quite often, a standard assembly drawing is not enough to ensure the quality of a PCB assembly, especially when designing high-density boards. It would also be helpful to include additional detailing for simpler devices. The use of a Draftsman document brings an elegant, yet powerful solution to make these tasks easier.
NEW
Blog
•
Why Modern Electronics Teams Are Moving to a Cloud ECAD Platform
Great products are built by connected teams, not disconnected tools. This article shows how cloud ECAD platforms enable real-time co-design, structured design reviews, and seamless collaboration across engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain teams.
NEW
Blog
•
10 Questions to Ask Your Fabricator Before Submitting a Rigid-Flex Design
A five-minute conversation with your fabricator could save weeks of redesign. Discover the ten questions that can improve manufacturability, boost yield, and help your rigid-flex project succeed on the first build.
Blog
•
Who Needs Integrated Electronic Component Search
Finding the right component shouldn't mean searching through dozens of websites and datasheets. This article shows how integrated component search helps engineers select parts faster while reducing sourcing risks and design delays.
Blog
•
How BOM Portal Supports R&D and Procurement with DFM & DFC Analysis Throughout the Entire Product Lifecycle
The best sourcing decisions happen when procurement is involved early. This webinar demonstrates how BOM Portal gives both engineering and procurement access to live lifecycle, pricing, compliance, and availability data to drive smarter decisions from prototype through production.
Blog
•
How to Design a PCB: From Schematic Capture to Manufacturing
This article walks through the complete PCB design workflow, from schematic capture and component selection to layout, design reviews, and manufacturing documentation. It highlights the key decisions at each stage that help engineering teams produce reliable, manufacturable products.
Blog
•
5 Power Integrity Myths: AC Edition
The biggest threat to your power integrity might be outdated design advice. This article challenges five common AC power integrity myths and shows what really matters when designing today's high-speed PCBs.
Blog
•
Your Design Data Has Zero Defense
Your design data may be more exposed than you think. This webinar shows how to identify common security gaps and secure engineering workflows with centralized access control and governance.
Blog
•
Flex Circuit Coverlay: Design with Lamination Processes In Mind
Your flex PCB may look perfect in CAD but coverlay doesn't stay perfectly still during manufacturing. This article reveals why designing for lamination behavior is one of the most important steps in building reliable flex circuits.
Blog
•
Integrated PCB Design vs. Legacy Point Tools: What’s the Real Cost?
As hardware development grows more collaborative, disconnected point tools can introduce data inconsistencies, traceability gaps, and costly coordination challenges. This article examines how integrated PCB design environments connect design, mechanical, supply chain, and review workflows to improve efficiency throughout the product lifecycle.
Blog
•
Make Better Design Decisions with Signal and Power Integrity Insight
Signal integrity and power integrity are closely connected, with problems in one often affecting the other as designs become faster and more complex. This webinar explains how integrated analysis workflows help engineers evaluate PDN performance, identify potential issues early, and improve overall design quality.
Blog
•
Optimizing Your Electronics Product Design Workflow and Eliminating Bottlenecks
Every manual handoff adds time and risk to the product development process. This article shows how modern design workflows automate routine tasks, improve data visibility, and help engineering teams focus on innovation instead of administration.
Blog
•
Avoid Cross-Board Signal Integrity Issues in High-Performance Multiboard PCB Designs
Your signal may be perfect on the PCB and fail the moment it crosses a connector. This article explores the hidden SI challenges in multi-board systems and how engineers can eliminate them before they become costly debugging sessions.
Blog
•
Proto-BOM in Minutes: How BOM Portal Accelerates Component Selection
Still building BOMs the hard way? Discover how modern workflows can help you create a prototype-ready BOM faster while improving visibility into pricing, availability, and risk.
Blog
•
How to Manage Power Integrity and EMI in Complex Multiboard Systems
This article examines the challenges of maintaining power integrity and controlling EMI in complex multiboard systems. It provides practical strategies for managing return paths, connector transitions, and power distribution across interconnected assemblies.
Blog
•
Agile Teams: From Design Tool to Product Development Platform
Learn how Agile Teams evolves beyond traditional PCB design workflows to support connected product development. This webinar explores how centralized data, collaboration tools, and governance capabilities help teams accelerate delivery while maintaining control.
Blog
•
Benefits of Using an Integrated Design Environment for PCB Development
Using separate tools often creates inefficiencies and increases the risk of mistakes. This article explains how integrated design environments streamline workflows by keeping design data connected and accessible.
Your search returns no results.
