RF Equipment PCB and PCBA Design

RF PCB design and the radio-frequency front end

In a wireless communication system, only a relatively small front-end section operates at radio frequency. The rest of the circuit performs low-frequency baseband analog and digital signal processing. An RF front end commonly includes a low-noise amplifier, a mixer and a power amplifier.

Although the RF front end contains fewer components than the baseband circuitry, it remains central to overall system performance.

The six RF design tradeoffs

RF PCB design processes analog signals across a wide dynamic range at high frequency. Like the multi-parameter tradeoffs often illustrated by an octagonal rule in analog IC design, RF design has its own six-sided balance:

• Noise
• Linearity
• Supply voltage
• Gain
• Operating frequency
• Power

Two or more of these parameters often constrain one another, creating a multidimensional optimization problem. The resulting compromises make the RF designer’s judgment and practical experience important when selecting an appropriate balance.

RF PCB applications

1. Base-station RF circuit boards
2. Mobile-phone RF circuit boards
3. Wireless local-area-network (WLAN) RF PCBs
4. Global positioning system (GPS) RF PCBs
5. Radio-frequency identification (RFID) boards
6. Internet of Things (IoT) RF PCBs

Design and manufacturing capabilities