Signal Integrity and EMI Fundamentals

Course 243

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Summary

This course covers the methodology of designing an electronic product to minimize the possibilities for electromagnetic interferences (EMI) and signal integrity (SI) problems. The techniques are useful specially for designers of high speed digital and analog circuits, and radiofrequency designers. The basics of designing electronic products with SI and EMI in mind are introduced in a very understandable and entertained style. This is a three day course with a very practical approach through many real world examples, techniques, simulation and hardware demos.

First, the basics of EMI and SIGNAL INTEGRITY in electronic circuits including a review of components in the high frequency/speed domain are presented. The typical EMI/SI problems (crosstalk, reflections, coupling mechanisms, radiation, pickup, etc.) are discussed in a general perspective. Transmission lines and impedance matching are covered because of the importance in the design of a robust system as explained in the rest of the course.

Second, GROUNDING, FILTERING and the design techniques for PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARDS (PCBS) in high frequency/speed systems are covered.

Finally, CABLES, the longest elements in our designs are discussed. They are key elements in the signal propagation and antenna effects of any electronic design. A general and intuitive explanation of antenna fundamentals is included for non RF specialists explaining in a very intuitive way the radiation and pick-up behaviour of cables as "hidden antennas." Finally instrumentation and measuring and troubleshooting techniques for EMI/SI problems are included.

No prior EMI/SI knowledge is needed but an electrical engineering background (BSEE or equivalent experience) is recommended.

Learning objectives

Upon completing the course you will be able to:

understand the basics and fundamentals of EMI and SIGNAL INTEGRITY (SI) issues.
look at the high frequency fundamentals of EMI/SI, modelling the problems to be able to propose solutions.
locate and fix EMI/SI problems in a product or installation.
design electronic equipment to avoid common EMI/SI failures.
use lab measurements and tools to find or fix typical EMI/SI problems.
reduce time and cost of EMI/SI diagnostic and fixes.

Target Audience

Design engineers/technicians from the electronics industry involved in EMI and SIGNAL INTEGRITY (SI) problems.
those interested in a working knowledge of EMI/SI engineering principles and concerned with EMI/SI problems as high speed digital designers, RF designers and PCB layout engineers.
managers responsible for design, production, test and marketing of electronic products.
marketing engineers who need a general and practical knowledge of the EMI/SI basics.

Outline

Day One

Fundamentals

• Electrical signals • Maxwell vs. Kirchhoff: limits of circuit theory • Decibel and logarithmic scales • Spectrum of a signal: time domain vs. frequency domain • Resonance • Quality factor (Q) both loaded and unloaded • Bandwidth • Impedance matching definition • Frequency vs. dimensions (size) • Time vs. distance • Scattering parameters (s-parameters) • Typical formats and how to measure them

High speed/frequency effects in electronic circuits: when a capacitor is an inductor

• High speed and RF effects: attenuation, gain, loss and distortion • Skin effect, return current and parasitic effects • The importance of rise time and fall times (dv/dt and di/dt) • Controlling signal return currents, differential vs. common mode currents • Introduction • Non ideal components • The "hidden schematic" concept - Resistors, capacitors and inductors - Ferrites - Transformers - Diodes - Transistors - ICs • Digital and high speed circuit key parameters - power, speed and package • Wires • Cables and connections basics • PCB structures (dielectric materials, structures, dissipation factor, the multi-layer structure idea) • Transmission lines basics • Lumped vs. distributed systems • Vias (effects and modelling in high frequency) • Shielding basics • Clocks

Transmission lines: controlling propagation

• Wiring and connecting components - limitations for high frequency and high speed systems • What is a transmission line? • Motivation: signal propagation • Modelling a transmission line - Characteristic impedance - Velocity of propagation • description of typical transmission lines - coax, pairs, microstrip and stripline • Reflection coefficient • Standing wave ratio (SWR, VSWR and ISWR) and Return loss • Intuitive explanation • Examples from real world

Matching: Avoiding reflections. Obtaining maximum power transfer

• Maximum transfer of power and avoiding reflections • Matching with LC components • Matching networks: L, PI and T networks • Matching in narrow and broadband networks • Matching with transformers • Matching with transmission lines • Terminations to avoid SI/EMI problems: solutions and techniques • Using software to design a matching network • Examples from real world

Day Two

Signal Integrity Parameters

• What is Signal Integrity (SI) in electronic circuits? • undesired effects • Propagation time and delay • Reflections and ringing • Inductive vs. capacitive coupling - crosstalk (near and far) • Delays • Jitter • Ground bounce • Power supply noise • High frequency, dv/dt and di/dt

Grounding: the most important subject

• Signal ground vs. safety ground • Ground in high frequency/speed applications - low impedance path • Minimizing ground impedance • Common impedance • Ground strategies (single point, multipoint, and hybrid) • Ground loops

Filtering

• Basic ideas • Filters for known impedances (no EMI applications) • Basic design techniques with examples • Filters for EMI/EMC • How filters work: reflection vs. dissipation • Insertion losses • Source and load influence • Parasitic and location effects • Filtering with ferrites • Saturation and undesired coupling effects • Decoupling and bypass fundamentals • Damping resonances and ringing • Three terminal and feed through components

Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs)

• Basic ideas • Design strategy • Partitioning and critical zones • PCB structures - dielectric materials, structures, dissipation factor • Choosing the PCB structure: how many layers and distribution • Power planes design and distribution • Layout and routing (1, 2 and multilayer) techniques - traces - microstrip and stripline - corners - vias - controlling impedance for SI - transmission line effects and solutions • Ground planes • Splits or ground discontinuities in planes (slots) • Decoupling and bypass (how, where, resonances, etc): discrete capacitors vs. embedded techniques in high speed/RF designs • Crosstalk and guards • How ground plane layout affects crosstalk • Mixed signal PCBs (A/D designs) • Controlling clock waveform • Clock distribution • Clock shielding • Examples from real world

Day Three

Cables

• Basic ideas for cable fundamentals • The control of return current • Types of cables (wires, twisted pairs, coax, shielded cables, ribbon cables, etc.) • Cable impedance • Shielded cables and cable grounding • Connectors • Parasitics in connectors for high speed signals • Avoiding crosstalk and reflections in cables (layout and terminations) • Avoiding common impedance in cables • Reducing emissions and pick-up in cables • Examples from real world

Measuring and Troubleshooting Techniques

• Antenna basics • How to measure EMI and SI effects - tools, instruments and techniques • Scope and probe limitations • Review of some typical errors in measurement techniques • Measuring high frequency current in electronic circuits • Diagnostic and troubleshooting techniques and hints • Locating EMI sources with near field probes

Subject Areas:

Signal Integrity of High-Speed Digital Design

Excellent course. Very engaging instructor and high energy. Knows details, good practiced examples. M.J.

The material was interesting and relevant to many issues I have encountered in my role. J.L.

This course gave a very good overview of the material. The demos were extremely helpful.

Great overview of EMC/SI, deep dive when necessary. Demos were excellent. Instructor was very open and honest with experience, which is very appreciated! W.C.

The instructor is a very good teacher and it is easy to follow his ideas. Especially the examples are helpful.

The best lecture I've ever taken. Thank you. I learned so many valuable lessons!! HYL

I liked the practical approach to problems. SG

Instructor was very good, knowledgeable. The quality of the material was good and examples and explanations were relevant to this subject. Very good course and I would recommend it to my colleagues. Most of the theoretical explanations were supported with real world examples which is very good. B.D.

The instructor is very knowledgeable. I liked his way of teaching and demonstrations. He has a wide field of knowledge and a good sense of humor. The demos were awesome! S.J.

I liked the practical examples given during the course. I specifically enjoyed how Arturo made connections between the theory and applications by giving examples. Hands-on demos were very helpful and the real time explorations of various aspects of the course with multiple experiments. K.G.

He brings good energy to the class and keeps the participants engaged throughout the day. Highly technical, mainly coming from the years of experience. A.R.

Very good, intuitive approach. Repetition of key concepts is conductive to retention/learning. Valuable course! K.G.

I liked the lecture and the broad scope of the material. The instructor explained things clearly and asked/presented relevant questions about EMI problems that are common. A.N.

Explained things in a very easy way. Very practical. C.K.S.

He has a very good understanding for the material he presented. He gave very detailed explanations for every question asked. I liked the way he explained the EMI and EMC theory and problem solving methods. T.Y.J.

The course is useful to those engineers involved in design. This is important to pick up those theories learned during University and apply on working designs. The instructor had many real-life examples to share during the class. The practical session at the end was useful to summarize what was covered during the class. C.K.C.

The instructor was dynamic, animated, and enthusiastic. He keeps the attention of the class. I really enjoyed the real world examples with demos. W.W.R.

Every section of this course was significantly useful to me. There are options and various ways in which objectives of design can be achieved. The material covers the options of other researchers and these can give or help someone like me in my research giving a number of ways to do things. B.M.

Instructor was not only kowledgeable about material but had extensive hands-on real world experience. Very good at explaining complex material to a level that most could understand. J.C.

Obvious expert with experience teaching. If Dr. Mediano represents the quality of Besser Associates instructors, we will be requesting many more classes.

This was the best scientific/technical course I've had in over 15 years with my employer. I appreciate the appropriate balance of theory in the form of equations with real-world understanding of practical concepts. The material was very relevant to this audience. I especially appreciate the live experiments/demonstrations that the instructor took the time to show.

Very clear presentation. Excellent presentation of fundamental concepts as well as their application to real-world problems.

This was an excellent course. During my career I had limited interaction with finding magnetic or electric fields with PCB's. This course provided a good overview on the design of PCB's with respect to magnetic and electric fields. Troubleshooting PCB magnetic loops was explained well and the instructor was very knowledgeable in this area.

Really good class. My background is Mechanical Engineering and Dr. Mediano explained the subject in a way that I could easliy follow. Excellent instructor, very knowledgeable about the subject. Stories from industry were similar to problems we have encountered. C.W.

Professor was very knowledgeable and able to translate theory into practical examples and stories. Plenty of examples when discussing topics throughout the course. Instructor performed actual experiments to demonstrate topics. Dr. Mediano was very prepared to teach and answer questions. This course met my expectations and more. I enjoyed and learned a lot more about EMI and Signal Integrity which will help me become a better designer and electrical engineer. T.N.

Dr. Mediano was able to provide multiple rules of thumb and real world applications which made this class very valuable. J.R.

A lot of very good information, and obviously a very knowledgeable instructor. The demos were great. M.S.

The material was presented in a very simple to understand manner, despite the complexity of the subject. The instructor's understanding of the subject is very deep and I learned a great deal of highly applicable material. G.V.

Very detailed demonstration of noise generation as well as opportunities to related to real life signal issues (TV flickering, speaker phone noise, etc.). Also, a lot of opportunities to test our thinking so we can apply the knowledge learnt outside of class. S.H.

Excellent instructor. Very knowledgeable and passionate about the topic. Highly recommend to others.

Very approachable and knowledgeable instructor. Instruction content and sequence had a high level of repetition to help students comprehend. Demonstration sessions were very useful.

Excellent coverage from the basics to the practical. Dr. Mediano's approach was well organized and intuitive. T.V.

The instructor is an expert with both theoretical as well as practical knowledge on the subject. It is extremely rare to find such an instructor. I am very highly impressed with the course and I feel I gained a lot from this course. This is the best class I ever attended in my 10+ years of career in this field. Amazing class!! I wish I studied under this professor. B.R.

The course was really insightful where the real-world problems were explained. I was able to correlate some of the EMI problems I came across.

Incredibly knowledgeable of the material. Explained concepts thoroughly and took time to re-explain if it didn't make sense. Also, genuine interest in teaching and explaining the material. D.R.