EMI Pitfalls, Tips and Careers with Joost Brilman

OnTrack · 25 Jul 2024 · 40m · Episode 273

What this episode covers

Joost Brilman, an EMC consultant and creator of the EMI Buster newsletter, explains why pre-certified modules often fail in final systems due to lack of emission margin and discusses how mechanical factors like aluminum oxide layers and screw connections cause unexpected EMI issues. He details his work with specialized clients, such as electric bus manufacturers dealing with non-standardized charging interference, and outlines the transition from power electronics design to EMC consulting. Brilman emphasizes that EMC is fundamentally about containing electromagnetic fields through proper mechanical grounding and shielding, rather than just digital compliance testing.

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • The Amp Hour · 1h 20m

    Photon Rich, Cash Poor

    Dave Jones and Chris Gammell discuss a Keysight U1272A multimeter that suffers from severe susceptibility to conducted and radiated EM fields, a flaw inherent to its design that bypassed standard compliance testing. They also examine the Allwinner R8 processor and the new Chip Pro module, noting how the latter's System-on-Module design with integrated DDR3 makes previously inaccessible consumer chips viable for small-batch production. Finally, they critique the Wi-Fi kettle's usability failures and Solar Roadways' non-functional public installation, attributing these to marketing-driven product decisions rather than engineering value.

  • The Amp Hour · 1h 27m

    An Interview with Kieran O'Leary

    Chris Gammell, founder of Mixed Signal Systems, discusses his career transition from application engineering at semiconductor giants like Xilinx and Wolfson Microelectronics to running his own consultancy. He details the high-pressure environment of supporting tier-one customers with new silicon, the technical challenges of designing evaluation boards under compressed timelines, and the critical importance of understanding return current paths to avoid signal integrity and EMC failures in mixed-signal designs.

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 01m

    480: Surprises Early In The Game

    Jerry Twomey, principal engineer at Effective Electrons and author of the new O'Reilly book 'Applied Embedded Electronics,' discusses the critical gap between ideal textbook electronics and real-world non-ideal behaviors. He explains how the industry's shift toward System-on-Chip (SoC) designs has led many engineers to treat hardware as a black box, often resulting in failures related to EMI, ESD, and signal integrity that are not caught in simulation. Twomey shares specific lessons from his 40-year career, including the unique challenges of designing for satellite environments like vacuum and radiation, and advocates for getting hardware prototypes early to uncover these surprises.

  • Oxide and Friends · 1h 16m

    The Return to the Chamber of Mysteries

    Bryan Cantrill and Adam Leventhal of Oxide Computer Company are joined by Robert "RFK" Keith, Dan Chirpich, and Stu Donnan to discuss the company's recent struggle with FCC EMC compliance for their next-generation rack. The team details how testing 32 AMD Turin-based Cosmo sleds in Rack Model 0.5 revealed unexpected radiated emissions at 26.562 GHz from QSFP transceiver cages. After days of failed debugging attempts involving paint masking and cable repacking, a breakthrough came from a conference talk by Dan Chirpich on finite difference time domain analysis, which suggested using absorbing materials. The team successfully mitigated the issue by die-cutting and applying these absorbers to the connectors, allowing them to pass compliance testing.

  • Oxide and Friends · 1h 40m

    Oxide and the Chamber of Mysteries

    Bryan Cantrill, Adam Leventhal, and the Oxide Computer Company team (Eric Aasen, Nathanael Huffman, Robert Keith, Arjen Roodselaar, Josh Clulow, CJ Mendez) detail their journey through EMC and safety compliance for their rack-scale computer. They discuss the challenges of pre-compliance testing in Texas, debugging a critical component mismatch in the 'shark fin' drive connectors, and surviving a catastrophic power-on failure that destroyed 14 FPGAs. The team ultimately passes FCC certification with minimal margin after addressing antenna effects in the rear doors and implementing spread spectrum clocking.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by OnTrack. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.