Many PCBs now operate at digital signal frequencies of 10 GHz and higher, which means that appropriate measures are needed to prevent unacceptable signal degradation and their consequential errors. How much do you know about signal integrity? Take the quiz to find out!
Results
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#1. How is the rise time of a signal often measured?
#2. What do changes in the impedance that a signal sees cause?
#3. What is the best thing to do if you want to increase the capacitance of a via?
#4. What is not true about propagation delays?
#5. Which of the following is not a step to mitigate signal degradation?
#6. Where does the electric signal travel fastest?
#7. What does signal attenuation lead to?
#8. How can you minimize supply voltage fluctuations?
#9. What is the definition of crosstalk?
#10. What can you do to reduce crosstalk?
#11. Distance D spaces a pair of microstrip traces apart, and H is the separation from the ground plane. Which of the following generates greatest amount of cross talk?
#12. How can you minimize signal attenuation?
Good to have bought SI awareness by Quiz
Hello,
That was a great quiz.
I am not a Signal Integrity engineer but am interested and keen to learn.
Could you please explain something about the effect of “soldermask”.
I do appreciate your answers on questions 6 and 10.
Thanks and Best Regards,
Raymond
Hi Raymond,
We are happy to hear that from you.
Here’s the answer to your question: The solder mask has a higher dielectric constant than air.
Because of the increase in the dielectric, the stray capacitance increases for the same trace width. This will increase the propagation delay of the signal. For more details please read Understanding Signal Integrity in PCBs and 9 Factors That Lead to Signal Integrity Issues in a PCB
I am an analog custom silicon designer. I enjoyed the quiz very much. Thank you!
Thanks 🙂
Everything else being identical, does a PCB with thin layers of dielectric material (42 mils) is likely to radiate less compared to a PCB with thick dielectric layer (62 mils).
What is main consideration in selecting a dielectric material (out of so many) regardless of cost when designing a PCB
Hi, Bhupendra
Thank you for writing in!
The radiation in a PCB primarily depends on the length of the trace than the thickness of the dielectric material used. However, the radiation increases with the thickness of the dielectric material due to the current looping effect. Yes, the 42 mil thickness PCB will radiate lesser than a 62 mil thickness PCB.
The most important characteristics to be considered while selecting PCB material are dielectric constant and loss Tangent. To know more about it, read our article How to choose PCB materials and laminates for fabrication.
Hi,
That was a good quiz.