Dielectric constant is the first number most engineers consider when sorting through different printed-circuit-board (PCB) materials. But what does dielectric constant really mean? And how can it affect a design if it is not “the right” dielectric constant?
Introducing the newest version of the Microwave Impedance Calculator from Rogers’ Advanced Connectivity Solutions.
Solder mask is an often-overlooked component of an RF/microwave printed-circuit board (PCB). It provides protection for a circuit but can also have an effect on final performance, especially at higher frequencies.
Circuit designers must often select a circuit technology, such as microstrip or grounded coplanar waveguide (GCPW) circuitry, with a particular design and circuit material to achieve optimum performance.
High-frequency circuit designers must often consider the performance limits, physical dimensions, and even the power levels of a particular design when deciding upon an optimum printed-circuit-board (PCB) material for that design.
As our industry adapts to the evolving tradeshow landscape, many events have transitioned their “brick-and-mortar” presence to virtual trade show experiences as a way to connect industry participants in a socially distant world. Virtual shows and events are a viable and cost-effective option to generate additional engagement when traditional shows are not practical.
Circuit materials used in 5G Microwave and mmWave amps are subject to more requirements than ever before.
At Rogers Corporation a large part of our culture is our dedication to safety, in both the workplace and our environment. Many of our products enable safety-related applications, embodying the “protect” aspect of our commitment to help power, protect and connect our world.
In January of 2004, the Mars Opportunity Rover began its mission in the Meridiani Planum region of Mars after a 7 month long journey from its launch in Florida. Originally intended to collect data for 90 days and travel only 1000 meters, Opportunity persevered, completing its mission 15 years and 45 kilometers later.
Choosing a high frequency circuit board material often requires weighing several factors, including cost and performance. A key starting point in sorting through printed circuit board (PCB) materials is usually the dielectric constant, or Dk, one of the essential characteristics of a laminate material and one that is subject to many comparisons among different suppliers of PCB materials.
The MWI-2017 Microwave Impedance Calculator software doesn’t replace sophisticated suites of modeling tools, such as the Advanced Design System (ADS) from Agilent Technologies or Microwave Office from AWR. Nor can it challenge the prediction capabilities of a planar or 3D electromagnetic (EM) simulator such as HFSS from Ansys or the Sonnet suites from Sonnet Software. But what it does, it does well, which is to calculate key parameters for most common microwave transmission lines, including microstrip, stripline, and coplanar-waveguide transmission lines.
By 2020, experts project that 50 billion connected devices will be in use globally. The Internet of Things (IoT), smart homes, connected cars, fitness monitors and other emerging technologies are increasingly relying on global wireless networks to connect.
A global push to reduce CO2 emissions, as well as government incentives and consumer demand, is leading the world’s largest automotive manufacturers to accelerate plans to introduce all-electric and hybrid-electric (EV/HEV) models.
Millimeter-wave frequency bands hold valuable spectrum for what lies ahead: fifth-generation (5G) wireless communications and automotive collision-avoidance radar systems. Signals at 60 GHz and higher might have once been thought too high to transmit and receive with affordable circuits. But semiconductor devices and circuit technologies have improved in recent years and millimeter-wave circuits are becoming standard electronic equipment in many car models.
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Filter and antenna designers have long appreciated the benefits of designing distributed high-frequency circuits using defected ground structure (DGS) layouts with different types of circuit materials. As the name suggests, a DGS is a circuit in which an intentional defect or interruption has been formed in the ground plane to realize distributed forms of passive circuit elements, such as capacitors and inductors.
Much of the buzz on the show floor at the 2017 IMS in Honolulu was about millimeter-wave devices and circuits. At one time, frequencies above 30 GHz were considered “exotic” and only for military or scientific applications. But times have changed, and available spectrum is scarce.
Power electronics is changing rapidly. New packaging technologies are facing a rise in chip temperatures as seen in such applications as EVs / HEVs. Electronics increasingly need longer lifetimes to function in harsh conditions, such as wind turbines.
Printed circuits for high-speed and high-frequency applications rely on fine-featured transmission lines for signal transmission. Three of the most commonly used transmission-line technologies for these applications are microstrip, stripline, and grounded coplanar-waveguide (GCPW) transmission lines.
You think the pace of technology innovation is fast now, wait til you see what’s going to happen with 5G wireless. 5G will drive an Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem of intelligent, fully connected sensors and devices, capable of improving economies small and large, and further blurring geographical borders.
As electronic devices continue to shrink in size and increase in power, demand grows for power electronic circuits with higher power density. Increased operating temperatures are one of the tradeoffs of higher circuit power density, resulting in an increase in thermal stress for the circuit materials that serve as substrates for modern power electronic circuits. New processes and materials are available to address these challenges.
Growing demand for mobile wireless communications services has quickly eclipsed the capabilities of Fourth Generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless networks and created a need for a next-generation mobile wireless network solution. Fifth Generation (5G) wireless networks promise more capacity and capability than 4G LTE systems, using wider channel bandwidths, new antenna and modulation technologies, and higher carrier frequencies even through millimeter-wave frequencies. But before 5G wireless networks can become a reality, systems and circuits will be needed for higher frequencies than current 2.6-GHz 4G LTE wireless networks.
Woven glass is incorporated into printed-circuit-board (PCB) materials to provide structural strength. It aids the mechanical stability of a laminate, but what does it do to its electrical behavior? One of the classic concerns regarding woven glass reinforced laminate PCBs is that the “glass weave effect” can have negative impact on the electrical performance of high-speed or high-frequency circuits fabricated on these laminates. In this blog post, we examine some of the factors affecting the glass weave effect phenomenon.
