EMC system engineers face trade-offs when selecting high power amplifiers for RF immunity testing. During testing, the amplifier must withstand high levels of reflected power. An appreciation of how reflected power affects an amplifier is important if well-informed decisions are to be made. This article uses a simple thought experiment to de-mystify this complex phenomenon and … [Read more...]
Integrated Inductive Component Reduces Radiated Emissions in Power Applications
The geometry of magnetic components can affect the incidence of unwanted low frequency radiation in the magnetic field. Gabriel Arianes, David Castillo, Raquel Garcia and Oscar Perez; Ferroxcube, Guadalajara, Spain INTRODUCTION The miniaturization trend has resulted in smaller components and greater board densities in electronic applications. This very density, which … [Read more...]
Eliminating MYTHS about Printed Circuit Board Power/Ground Plane Decoupling
Bruce Archambeault, Ph. D. IBM Research Triangle Park, NC Barch@us.ibm.com Introduction The use of decoupling capacitors connected between the power and ground planes on a printed circuit board (PCB) is a common practice to help ensure proper functionality and to reduce EMI emissions from printed circuit boards. The proper number of decoupling capacitors, and … [Read more...]
EMI Filters for Cardiac Pacemakers and Implantable Defibrillators
The use of ceramic feed-through capacitors, as well as specific filter designs and installation techniques, can make cardiac pacemakers immune to EMI ROBERT A. STEVENSON, Maxwell Technologies Carson City, Nevada, USA Under the coordination of Wireless Technology Research, L.L.C. (WTR), the interaction between cellular phones and cardiac pacemakers has been widely … [Read more...]
Understanding the Measurement Uncertainties of the Bicon/Log Hybrid Antenna
Surge damage as a result of long cables connected to low voltage data systems can be prevented RICHARD MEININGER & ROBERT BLOUCH Since their first introduction in 1994 at the Roma International Symposium on EMC, bicon/log hybrid antennas have become very popular in EMC labs worldwide. Because there are no band breaks in frequency sweep, test time and effort are reduced. … [Read more...]