Latest Assembly Articles and Videos

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Assessing the Effect of Load Capacitance on the Frequency of a Quartz Crystal

Learn how the load capacitance mismatch can “pull” the crystal to oscillate at a different frequency and how we can circumvent this problem.

June 16, 2021 by Dr. Steve Arar

Four Lessons an Adult Engineer Can Learn From Children’s Toys

Children’s toys aren’t just for children. Inside every toy, there are hundreds of hours of engineering experience just waiting to be discovered.

March 24, 2021 by Mark Hughes

PCB Layout Techniques for Reducing Harmonic Distortion of a Differential ADC Driver

Summary

February 19, 2021 by Dr. Steve Arar

All About Seeing Your Projects: Optical and Digital Magnification

Smaller electronics call for more powerful inspection equipment. If you're building a collection of at-home lab equipment, these visual tools may help you see where you're going on minuscule boards.

February 14, 2021 by Mark Hughes

PCB Design Considerations When Using Bi-Directional Translators

In the past, we touched on the theoretical underpinnings of voltage-level translators. Now, we'll discuss some practical design tips for using these increasingly-common devices in your design.

December 11, 2020 by Nicholas St. John

Processing Solutions for High-Density PCBs

Designers must consider processing temperatures, producibility, and solder joint integrity of every component as well as higher I/O connectors. This article looks at ways to enable smaller component footprints for high-density PCBs.

November 03, 2020 by Brian Niehoff, Samtec

Applied Materials and BE Semiconductor Partner to Develop Chip Integration Technology

Applied Materials and BE Semiconductor Industries announce that they are to develop the "industry’s first complete and proven equipment solution for die-based hybrid bonding."

October 31, 2020 by Luke James

QFLN Packages and Automated Optical Inspections are Incompatible. Side-Wettable Flanks Bridge the Gap

Automated optical inspections can only be so thorough with QFLN packages. Pairing QFLN packages with side-wettable flanks facilitate the PCB assembly process.

October 15, 2020 by Jake Hertz

Molded Interconnect Devices May Be a PCB’s Partner in Design

Molded interconnect devices, when conditioned with laser direct imaging, could be a helpful 3D supplement to PCB design.

September 16, 2020 by Adrian Gibbons

Configuring a SparkFun Power Delivery Board using a FixturFab DEV260

The FixturFab DEV260 development fixture allows designers to debug or configure PCBAs during the development phase. See how it works in this example using the Sparkfun Power Delivery Board.

August 04, 2020 by Duncan Lowder, FixturFab

Aesthetics vs. Functionality in Circuit Design? In-Mold Electronics Eliminates the Tradeoff

An emerging field in electronics manufacturing may provide lightweight and cost-effective solutions to meet design constraints. But it's not without drawbacks.

July 15, 2020 by Jake Hertz

If You’ve Heeded the Rallying Cry for Ventilators, Here are the Government Regulations You Should Know

Learn about which government regulations have been dropped or modified to speed up design approval for ventilators.

March 31, 2020 by Robin Mitchell

Disinfect, Diagnose, and Treat: A Mission of Doctors and EEs Amidst COVID-19

Behind the scenes, engineers are stepping up to help doctors and nurses with life-saving medical devices and technologies.

March 30, 2020 by Gary Elinoff

A Comparison of Reflow Soldering and Wave Soldering

This article explores the differences between two primary forms of soldering — reflow and wave — by providing details around each type, including best uses for each method.

March 03, 2020 by Peter Swann, NeoDen

The Curiously Low-tech Side of High-tech Manufacturing

In this article, engineers discuss seemingly primitive parts of the manufacturing process and the feasibility of replacing those processes with automation.

February 08, 2020 by Ingrid Fadelli

MicroPower Direct’s 1W DC-DC Converters Geared for Board-level Power Distribution

The ML100E series offers 41 standard models with varying VDC inputs and output ranges along with short circuit protection and a wide range of temperature tolerances.

January 15, 2020 by Cabe Atwell

How Software Automation in PCBA Manufacturing Helps Quicken Innovation

Manufacturing still takes a large portion of time in the electrical engineering cycle. This article discusses how software-driven automation and the IIoT can help hasten the manufacturing process.

December 17, 2019 by Shashank Samala, Tempo Automation

TDK-EPCOS SMT Inductors | Tech Specs

This episode of Tech Specs is part of a video series highlighting the features, applications, and technical specs of newly-released products.

December 12, 2019 by TTI, Inc

NIC Components’ SMT Power Inductors Built to Operate Up to +155°C

The NPIM_PE series are automotive-grade metal composite SMT power inductors with an operating temperature range of ‐55°C to +155°C.

November 20, 2019 by Cabe Atwell

Via Configurations for Connecting Decoupling Capacitors

In this article, we’ll focus on the different via configurations that can be used to connect a decoupling capacitor to the PCB power and ground planes.

October 07, 2019 by Dr. Steve Arar