Circuit Board Design Course

Lesson 1 • Introduction to EDA Software

Surveys electronic design automation tools and their core interfaces. Students gain enough tool familiarity to begin schematic entry in the next section.

Lesson 2 • The PCB Design Workflow

Maps the end-to-end process from concept to manufactured board. Clarifies how schematic capture, layout, and fabrication files interconnect.

Lesson 3 • Electronic Components and Their Roles

Covers passive, active, and electromechanical components and their PCB footprints. Connects component function to physical placement requirements.

Lesson 1 • Schematic Drawing Fundamentals

Teaches wire placement, net labels, power symbols, and hierarchical sheets. Proper schematic structure prevents netlist errors in later layout stages.

Lesson 2 • Netlist Generation and Validation

Explains electrical rules checks and netlist export formats. Validated netlists ensure the layout tool receives correct connectivity data.

Lesson 3 • Building and Managing Component Libraries

Covers creating, editing, and organizing schematic symbols and footprint libraries. Accurate libraries are the foundation of error-free netlists.

Lesson 1 • Substrate and Dielectric Materials

Compares FR4, high-frequency laminates, and flexible substrates by electrical and thermal properties. Material choice drives impedance control and thermal management.

Lesson 2 • Layer Types and Their Functions

Distinguishes signal, power, and ground layers and their roles in current distribution. Layer assignment decisions made here affect all routing choices later.

Lesson 3 • Designing the Layer Stack-Up

Guides students through specifying a manufacturable stack-up document for a fabricator. A complete stack-up spec reduces fabrication errors and cost surprises.

Lesson 1 • Assembly and Manufacturability Considerations

Applies design-for-assembly rules: component spacing, polarity marking, and fiducial placement. These rules directly reduce assembly defect rates.

Lesson 2 • Placement Planning and Board Partitioning

Introduces functional block grouping, keep-out zones, and mechanical constraints. Logical partitioning reduces routing complexity in subsequent chapters.

Lesson 3 • Thermal Management in Placement

Covers heat-generating component placement, thermal relief pads, and airflow considerations. Poor thermal placement causes premature component failure.

Lesson 1 • Differential Pair Routing

Teaches length matching, spacing rules, and common-mode noise rejection for differential pairs. Differential routing is essential for USB, Ethernet, and LVDS interfaces.

Lesson 2 • Power and Ground Plane Routing

Addresses plane splits, anti-pad design, and power distribution network routing. Solid power delivery underpins reliable operation of all signal nets.

Lesson 3 • Design Rule Check and Routing Cleanup

Runs DRC, resolves violations, and applies final cleanup passes for a production-ready board. A clean DRC report is required before generating fabrication outputs.

Lesson 4 • Single-Ended Signal Routing

Covers 45-degree routing, return path continuity, and layer transitions for standard signals. Good single-ended routing habits form the basis for differential routing.

Lesson 1 • Crosstalk Analysis and Mitigation

Covers capacitive and inductive coupling between adjacent traces and methods to reduce it. Crosstalk mitigation is applied directly to routing decisions from Chapter 5.

Lesson 2 • Transmission Line Theory for PCB Designers

Explains characteristic impedance, propagation delay, and termination for PCB traces. Understanding transmission line behavior is prerequisite to controlled-impedance routing.

Lesson 3 • Pre-Compliance Testing Strategies

Introduces near-field probing, spectrum analysis, and design iteration before formal testing. Early pre-compliance testing reduces costly late-stage redesigns.

Lesson 1 • Design for Manufacturability Review

Applies DFM checks for minimum feature sizes, annular rings, and solder mask requirements. DFM review prevents fabrication rejections and unexpected cost adders.

Lesson 2 • Drill Files and Board Outline

Explains Excellon drill file format, drill symbols, and board outline export. Accurate drill data prevents misaligned vias and holes in fabricated boards.

Lesson 3 • Gerber File Generation

Covers Gerber format standards, layer mapping, and export settings for each board layer. Correct Gerber files are the primary deliverable to any PCB fabricator.

Lesson 1 • Power Integrity Analysis

Introduces PDN impedance targets, decoupling optimization, and simulation-based power integrity analysis. Power integrity failures cause intermittent logic errors that are difficult to debug.

Lesson 2 • High-Speed Interface Design

Covers DDR, PCIe, and high-speed serial interface layout requirements including length matching and reference planes. High-speed interfaces demand stricter layout discipline than standard signals.

Lesson 3 • Rigid-Flex and HDI Board Design

Extends layout skills to rigid-flex constructions and high-density interconnect boards with microvias. These technologies enable compact, high-reliability products.

Lesson 4 • Capstone Project: Multi-Layer Board

Integrates all core skills into a complete multi-layer board design from schematic to fabrication outputs. The capstone demonstrates professional-level design competency.