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𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗣𝗖𝗕, 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘄𝗮𝘆. This is where Signal Integrity (SI) comes in. Poorly designed traces can cause: -) 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 – 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲, 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀. -)) 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸 – 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 “𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗸” 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿. -) 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 – 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮. Good PCB design isn’t just about connecting components; it’s about ensuring those signals arrive cleanly, quickly, and reliably. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝟰 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆: 1. Control trace impedance – Match the trace impedance to the source/load to reduce reflections. 2. Keep traces short & direct – Long traces act like antennas, increasing noise and delay. 3. Use proper spacing – Separate high-speed or sensitive signals to reduce crosstalk. 4. Solid ground planes – Always provide a clean return path to stabilize signals and minimize noise. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗖𝗕 ? Open to Collaboration. #PCBDesign #SignalIntegrity #ElectronicsDesign #Hardware PCB Mentor
The real highway is the space in the dielectric between the conductor and its reference path (plane or trace)
Joseph Ogbonna, I reported the spam comment on this post. I don't see it anymore, and hope that's the same for everyone else.
Keep analog separated from digital, use different ground and power planes. Also, many of the issues you mentioned become more important at higher frequency. A bunch of GPIOs that toggle LEDs is nothing to be concerned about, which is why routing should begin with analog and high-speed signals. Leave the low-speed stuff until the end, when those last trace routes will look like little Billy's adventures in Family Circus.
Thanks for the write-up, Joseph. Really appreciate how you broke down the fundamentals of SI. My question is — what happens when you start scaling up into extreme complexity? For example, designing a 52-layer PCB with over 100k channels. At that point, the challenges with impedance control, crosstalk, and grounding become almost architectural problems rather than just layout concerns. Would love to hear your perspective on how SI practices evolve (or break down) once we reach that scale.
Coaching teams to optimize project execution. Just call me!
2moA PCB is an electronic component, which often designers forget to take into account.