Hi all,
my name is Tobias, newbie here and with Sierra, also a newbie regarding hardware. I’m coming to hardware from a software developer career, so pls be patient / forgiving;)
I’ve got a “couple of questions”, so I’m here to ask for any hints / help, which would be much appreciated!
rgd “hello world”, let me add a bit more color: I’ve got a ton of and broad experience in SW in various fields.
I got into SW a “long time” ago at early age. I’ve been socialized when computers were 8 bits with 2kB RAM. On the CDP1802 (the “COSMAC Elf”), which funny enough is still available, “rad hardened only”, because of the “app level”
I am also a huge OSS fan and contributor (oberstet (Tobias Oberstein) · GitHub, https://wamp-proto.org/), and also a big privacy / security advocate.
anyways. now I became interested in creating my “own hardware”, and that HW will have PCB antennas, so I got into openEMS and EM modeling/simulation, and knowing basically nothing about RF, that was quite a ride;)
But at this point I now have my antenna working in the openEMS FDTD simulator, with configurable PCB stack, and I want to get a real PCB prototype manufactured, measure and verify using a VNA.
One question that I have rgd the Sierra impedance calculator: Is there a flavor for Double-sided Parallel Stripline (DSPSL) designs?
Apparently, this seems to be the name (not sure though) for what I’ve been doing for the feed line in my planar/printed LPDA to hit 50 Ohm at the feed line entry point, which is for a 2-Layer board:
I have used the Broadside Coupled Stripline calculator, but this doesn’t really fit and match results from openEMS.
Related, as hinted above, the antennas will be on separate boards, and I want to use a 2-layer stackup for those.
I found one manufacturer that does affordable 2-layer prototype PCBs with one thin (760um) core substrate (PTFE Teflon) and low Dk (~3).
Which is almost ideal. It does have ENIG, not Silver Immersion, but I guess I can live with that technically, and price is also relevant.
Does Sierra have sth similar - for PCB prototyping?
Another question is about
“Learn about our KiCad quote plugin thread”
I am using KiCad, and I’d love to give it a try. Being able to push designs from within KiCad, and have it verified by Sierra, and also price-quoted would be great!
However, I do get
“Oops! That page doesn’t exist or is private.”
Well, enough for a 1st post;) As said, any response appreciated!
Have a nice day, cheers,
/Tobias
