Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1533085
electronics but not classes in design- ing electronics that are compliant with international requirements? I love that, and I'm going to use it in my classes. There are so many areas for designers to get important training and education in design for test, design for manufacturability, design for thermal. It is the same with EMC. e main thing to look out for is that every single switching operation pro- duces high-frequency noise, and the faster the switching operation, the higher the frequency of noise it pro- duces. Even though you're sitting there looking at a DC converter, and you say, "I've got DC on one side, DC on the other side, there shouldn't be a radiation prob- lem because things can't radiate at DC." But because of the switching operation, as it goes from 12 volts to 5 volts or 120 volts AC from the wall to 3 volts somewhere on your board, you can easily get RF signals. Switching happens with all the switch-mode power supplies we all have, and all of that generates high-frequency noise. You have to think about not just the low- frequency DC design elements, but also, "I'm generating this noise; I need to make sure I know what it's doing." Yes, that's the main thing: the analysis and the troubleshooting portion. Are you often giving direction to engineers?: "Here's what's wrong, and here's how you may fix it." Yes, troubleshooting is my favorite part of the job. I want to be where education and design reviews are the main parts of my business because that, again, gets people through the process more efficiently. My favorite part is troubleshooting because it's creative, collabora- tive, and high stakes. Not every engineer thrives on that kind of adrenaline, but it's my thing. But what we're really looking for are three parts to every EMC problem: a noisy source, a MARCH 2025 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 65 sensitive victim, and a coupling path between them. Once you can identify all three ele- ments, you've got a bunch of different avenues to attack the problem: Can I quiet down the source? Can I put in something to interrupt the coupling path? is is really good because most of the time, once I've identified those things, my first solution will, for instance, be to quiet down the source. People say, "No, you can't do it. If you make us do that, it'll cost a billion dollars and take five years. e whole company will go out of business. Find another way to fix it. Could we maybe add some fil- tering to the victim? e world will end, and asteroids will fall." That is another theme. is is another theme, and usually, I'm about four or five solutions in before I find one every- one can live with. But having that kind of framework to attack the problem gives you a lot of options. If I have an EMC problem, you will be a great resource. You are so direct and easy to understand. It's been a delight. Thank you again so much. ank you. DESIGN007