# 398: Clocks Get Into Everything

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2022-01-14
- Length: 1h 10m
- Episode: 398
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything
- Listen: https://embedded.fm/episodes/398

## Summary

Tom Anderson, an engineer at Keysight Technologies who also consults for Alembic, explains the fundamentals of radio frequency (RF) electronics, clarifying that RF issues arise from voltage differentials on wires due to signal propagation delays. He demystifies RF jargon like dBm and Smith charts (which he calls 'dollhouses') and discusses practical design strategies, such as managing clock rise times, avoiding ground plane slots, and tuning antennas using varactors. The conversation also covers the specific electronic challenges of high-end bass guitars, including EMI shielding and signal-to-noise ratios.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=6) Introduction: Tom Anderson and Alembic Basses
- [4:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=281) RF Fundamentals: Wires, Delay, and Voltage Differences
- [10:19](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=619) RF Jargon: Decibels, dBm, and 50 Ohms
- [14:56](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=896) Smith Charts: The 'Dollhouse' for Impedance
- [32:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=1978) Practical RF: Clocks, Slots, and Accidental Antennas
- [46:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=2815) Antenna Design: Size, Matching, and Varactors
- [56:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything#t=3380) Alembic Electronics: EMI, Hum, and Noise Floors

## Topics

- [Wireless & RF](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/wireless-and-rf)
- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Keysight Technologies (company)
- Agilent (company)
- HP (company)
- Alembic (company)
- OSH Park (company)
- Smith chart (tool)
- Bode plot (tool)
- varactor (chip)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [An Interview with Eric Bogatin - Tilded Thumb Tenets](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2015-06-04-an-interview-with-eric-bogatin-tilded-thumb-tenets) (The Amp Hour)
- [Call In Show #3](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2016-02-26-call-in-show-3) (The Amp Hour)
- [Top 10 Product Design Mistakes You Must Avoid](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/predictable-designs-podcast/2022-07-05-top-10-product-design-mistakes-you-must-avoid) (Predictable Designs Podcast)
- [All About Antennas with Katerina Galitskaya](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2024-10-01-all-about-antennas-with-katerina-galitskaya) (The Amp Hour)
- [Ep103: Antennas for Everyone, a Clock Made of Chains, Magic Eye Tubes, and a Little Google Bashing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2021-01-29-ep103-antennas-for-everyone-a-clock-made-of-chains-magic-eye-tubes-and-a-little) (Hackaday Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2022-01-14-398-clocks-get-into-everything. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.