Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1496727
10 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2023 RF is becoming almost ubiquitous; how many devices in your home contain at least one antenna? Automotive, aerospace, defense, and IoT segments are all pushing the envelope for wireless communication. But designing an RF PCB is a lot different than designing typical boards. We recently met with IPC instructor Kris Moyer for a discussion about designing RF PCBs and wireless applications in general. Kris teaches RF design, among other things, so we asked him to discuss RF design techniques, how designing for wireless applications differs from laying out traditional PCBs, and when to design your own antenna vs. using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) antennas. Andy Shaughnessy: Kris, tell us about the RF and wireless PCB market. How does it compare to the rest of the market for PCBs? It's never huge, but with the increase of smart devices and IoT devices, it's definitely grow- ing. It's not easy to design. ink about your modern cellphone, or your modern smart watch that has GPS, a Wi-Fi antenna, a cellular antenna, and a Bluetooth antenna. Happy Holden: Now there's wireless charging. Right. So, there are five different RF frequen- cies and modules running simultaneously on one board. ere are probably more than just five that we're not aware of in terms of what the military, NASA, and other organizations like SpaceX are doing with hundreds of little satellites. e big question is: How do you get all of that to work together and not interfere with each other? Shaughnessy: Our readers have a lot of ques- tions about antennas and antenna design. Feature Interview by the I-Connect007 Editorial Team