Many different factors contribute to the success or failure of your PCB design.
If you really want to increase the quality and robustness of your PCBs by designing better PCBs, you need to have the right knowledge and practice. It’s easy to get overwhelmed. That’s why we’ve gathered this list of 19 Guides, Youtube Channels, Websites, Podcasts Tools to make your life easier.
YouTube Channels
1. Altium Academy – aims to educate PCB Designers and Engineers across the world. Learn directly from professionals and industry experts as they share their knowledge covering basic PCB design principles, advanced engineering topics, and everything in-between.
2. Digikey – Digi-Key Corporation is a distributor of quality electronic components, including Electromechanical, Interconnect, Optoelectronics, Passives, Power, RF & Wireless, Semiconductors, Sensors, Thermal Products and Test Tools. Their YouTube channel includes videos on:
- FPGAs
- Calculating PCB Trace Width
- Introduction to Real-Time Operating System (RTOS)
- Getting Started with STM32 and Nucleo
- and much more
3. Phil’s Lab – is a YouTube channel by a professional electrical and control systems engineer, a graduate of the University of Cambridge, and a creator of educational engineering videos. Content includes topics such as:
- Analog and digital circuit design (MCUs, audio electronics, FPGAs, etc.)
- PCB design (KiCad and Altium Designer)
- STM32 microcontrollers + firmware
- Digital signal processing (e.g. IIR/FIR filters)
- Programming (e.g. custom flight simulators)
- Sensor fusion (e.g. Kalman filters)
4. EEVblog – is a video blog about Electronics Engineering, for engineers, hobbyists, enthusiasts, hackers and Makers. The EEVblog is hosted by David L. Jones, an electronics design engineer based in Sydney, Australia. In each episode, he shares some of his 25+ years of experience in the electronics design industry in his unique non-scripted, naturally enthusiastic and passionate style.
5. MicroType Engineering – Takes advanced topics, boils them down to key concepts, and shows how to implement them into real-world products.
6. Robert Feranec – his content is about electronics, Altium Designer Cadence OrCAD / Allegro and Hardware Design tips and tricks. He is the founder of FEDEVEL, a company which has created and is running FEDEVEL Academy. courses and has developed FEDEVEL Education platform for online teaching. Robert specializes in advanced digital development focusing on processor, motherboard and microcontroller board design.
Websites
7. Electrical Integrity – a website for the professional signal and power integrity engineering community. The content is split between signal and power integrity. Includes a collection of manuscripts and presentation files.
8.Official Printed Circuit Board Subreddit – Lots of information, links, reviews & tips about Schematic design, PCB layout, BOM list, tools & equipment, and more.
Guides
9. Nasa Workmanship Standards – The Inspectors Pictorial Reference provides full color visual examples of acceptance/rejection criteria that may be used for the design, manufacture and inspection of electrical/electronic equipment for high-reliability and space flight applications, and is a reference-only companion to the NASA Technical Standard, NASA-STD-8739 series of workmanship requirements documents.
10.Texas Instruments High-Speed PCB Layout Guidelines – This application report addresses high-speed signals, such as clock signals and their routing, and gives designers a review of the important coherences. With some simple rules, electromagnetic interference problems can be minimized without using complicated formulas and expensive simulation tools. Section 1 gives a short introduction to theory, while Section 2 focuses on practical PCB design rules. Either section can be read independently.
11. Sierra Circuits High-Speed PCB Design Guide – this booklet addresses the high-speed PCB design challenges and the best practices to be followed to meet those challenges.
12. Printed Circuit Boards – A NASA Perspective – this guide is intended to be used to introduce printed circuit board (PCB) product assurance information for use by NASA projects.
14. Spirent Communications PCB CAD Design Guidelines – provides information on Trace Widths and Spacing, Anti-Pad/Plane Relief, Laser Drilled Micro-Vias, Plated Through-Holes, Fiducial Requirements, and other aspects of PCB design.
15. Dialog Semiconductor PCB Layout Guidelines – Sections 4.1 and 4.2 discuss general PCB layout rules applicable to any PCB design.
Podcasts
16. Signal Integrity Journal Podcast – Includes fireside chats with members from the Signal Integrity Journal community who are experts in their field and have a commitment to providing training and education in SI, PI, and EMC/EMI issues for other engineers.
17. OnTrack– The PCB Design Podcast – covers the latest news, updates, and technology in the electronics design industry. Everything from routing, circuit simulation, high-speed design, and finding circuit board manufacturers and component parts.
Tools
18. SnapEDA – is an electronics design library that provides ready-to-use building blocks for design, including symbols & PCB footprints, to reduce product development time. Their models are created using proprietary, automated creation, verification, and translation technology.
19. KiCad EDAElectronic Design Automation (EDA). The programs handle Schematic Capture, and PCB layout with Gerber output. The suite runs on Windows, Linux and macOS and is licensed under GNU GPL v3.