Webinar: EMI Sources that Impact your PCB Design
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June 10th, 2026 | 9 AM PT
COST: FREE
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17
Days
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15
Hours
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24
Minutes
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27
Seconds
Vandana CC
Engineering Project Coordinator at Sierra Circuits
Karen Burnham
President & Chief Engineer of EMC United
This webinar will be hosted on Zoom.
Following this event, you will receive:
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Slides
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Recording
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Design guides
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Tools
Webinar abstract:
With increasing switching speeds and denser PCB layouts, managing EMI becomes challenging in today’s electronic applications. Even a small discontinuity in the return path or a poorly placed via might turn your board into a source or receiver of EM noise. If you ignore these issues during the design stage, you may encounter EMC test failures later.
In this webinar, you’ll learn about the common EMI sources in PCB designs, such as switching power supplies, clock circuits, and via transitions. You’ll also learn practical layout strategies to minimize emissions.
Common EMI sources and design techniques for EMC compliance
Switching power supplies are among the most common EMI sources in PCB designs. DC-DC converters create high di/dt current loops that radiate strongly, especially when the loop area is too large. To reduce radiated emissions, keep these loops compact. Place the bypass capacitor near the switching device. Ensure you do not route the switching circuits near sensitive analog circuits to minimize voltage spikes.
Clock signals also generate significant electromagnetic noise because of their fast rise times. If you route clock traces near board edges, connectors, or cables, they might radiate. Therefore, keep clock lines as short as possible. You can place them at least 20H away from the board edge, where H is the dielectric height between the trace and the reference plane.
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Via transitions are one of the hidden EMI sources in PCB designs. Every via introduces parasitic inductance and capacitance that can create unwanted resonances at higher frequencies. To prevent this, reduce unnecessary vias in high-speed paths.
Component placement has a major influence on overall EMI. If noisy switching circuits sit too close to sensitive analog sections, coupling becomes unavoidable. Hence, isolate noisy digital circuits. Keep switching regulators, clock generators, and high-speed interfaces grouped.
EMI control can no longer be left for the final-stage verification in modern PCB designs. By applying the right layout practices and understanding the causes of EMI, you can design more reliable and EMC-compliant circuit boards.
Join this webinar to learn practical EMI reduction techniques for your next high-speed project.
Webinar agenda:
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How fast switching signals turn your PCB traces into EMI sources
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Why do return path discontinuities increase radiated emissions?
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The hidden EMI sources
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Stack-up strategies that improve EMC performance
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Layout mistakes that induce EMI
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How clock routing and power converters impact signal integrity
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Practical grounding techniques to suppress EMI
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How to minimize loop areas and contain EM fields
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Q&A with Karen Burnham
Vandana CC, Sierra Circuits
With a strong foundation in physics, Vandana CC brings a deep technical understanding to her work in PCB design and electronics manufacturing. She holds a Master’s in Physics and has experience teaching before transitioning into research at the Indian Institute of Science.
At Sierra Circuits, Vandana has played a key role in R&D projects, contributing to the development of engineering tools and calculators, technical content creation, and customer demos. Currently, she focuses on project coordination, ensuring seamless collaboration both within the team and with external partners. Her expertise bridges the gap between technical innovation and practical application, making her an integral part of Sierra Circuits’ engineering efforts.
Karen Burnham, EMC United
Karen Burnham has worked in and around the aerospace, defense, automotive, and broader consulting world since 1996. She has a BS in Physics, an MS in Electrical Engineering, and a talent for translating EMC to English. She has managed requirements and test planning for NASA and the Dream Chaser spaceship and others. She has done troubleshooting on electric vehicles for Ford Motor Company and others. She has initiated innovative SBIRs and STTRs through government centers and worked on classified programs. She has consulted on projects across a wide swath of industries and sits on multiple international standards committees, landing her in her current role of Vice President of Standards for the IEEE EMC Society.
Ms. Burnham founded EMC United, Inc. in 2024 in order to focus on helping companies and hardware designers solve EMC problems, ideally before they even start. She believes that, far from being black magic, EMC can be understandable (and even fun!), and she hopes to spread that passion more widely.
