Publications

A program has been written that allows us to predict the trace-to- trace cross-coupling on printed circuit boards for many geometries of practical interest. It combines multiconductor transmission line analysis with circuit analysis in the time domain. Multiple sections of uniform lines, of varying number and characteristics, can be interconnected by passive circuit elements. These circuit elements may represent physical components or the effects of discontinuities in the lines. These predictions were compared with measurements for simple geometries, with good agreement in both waveshape and amplitude. The major discrepancies were in the amplitudes of fast rising spikes and are probably due to the fact that the predictions did not account for the increasing attenuation at high frequencies. 10 refs., 12 figs.

The final link in the High-Power Microwave (HPM) coupling chain is the distribution of energy on printed-circuit (pc) boards. This distribution is a critical part of the total problem, because the bottom line for damage or upset is what occurs at the component level. Like ports-of-entry (POE's), board coupling paths have their own transfer functions. Since most pc boards are not designed to operate at microwave frequencies, these transfer functions can be very complicated. In addition, active elements on the board are likely to make this part of the problem non-linear. 3 refs., 5 figs.