SNVS875O August 2012 – December 2015 LM3262
PRODUCTION DATA.
PC board layout is critical to successfully designing a DC-DC converter into a product. As much as a 20-dB improvement in RX noise floor can be achieved by carefully following recommended layout practices. A properly planned board layout optimizes the performance of a DC-DC converter and minimizes effects on surrounding circuitry while also addressing manufacturing issues that can have adverse impacts on board quality and final product yield.
Poor board layout can disrupt the performance of a DC-DC converter and surrounding circuitry by contributing to EMI, ground bounce, and resistive voltage loss in the traces. Erroneous signals could be sent to the DC-DC converter device, resulting in poor regulation or instability. Poor layout can also result in re-flow problems leading to poor solder joints between the DSBGA package and board pads. Poor solder joints can result in erratic or degraded performance of the converter.
Minimize resistive losses by using wide traces between the power components and doubling up traces on multiple layers when possible.
By its very nature, any switching converter generates electrical noise, and the design challenge is to minimize, contain, or attenuate such switcher-generated noise. A high-frequency switching converter, such as the LM3262, switches Ampere level currents within nanoseconds, and the traces interconnecting the associated components can act as radiating antennas. The following guidelines are offered to help to ensure that EMI is maintained within tolerable levels.
To minimize radiated noise:
To minimize ground-plane noise:
To minimize coupling to the voltage feedback trace of the DC-DC converter:
To decouple common power supply lines, series impedances may be used to strategically isolate circuits:
The LM3262 package employs a 9-pin, 3-mm × 3-mm array of 250 micron solder balls, with a 0.4-mm pad pitch. The following simple design rules go a long way to ensuring a good layout:
Use of the DSBGA package requires specialized board layout, precision mounting, and careful re-flow techniques, as detailed in AN-1112 DSBGA Wafer Level Chip Scale Package (SNVA009). Refer to the section regarding surface mount technology assembly. For best results in assembly, alignment ordinals on the PC board must be used to facilitate placement of the device. The pad style used with DSBGA package must be the NSMD (non-solder mask defined) type. This means that the solder-mask opening is larger than the pad size. This prevents a lip that otherwise forms if the solder-mask and pad overlap from holding the device off the surface of the board and interfering with mounting. See SNVA009 for specific instructions on how to do this.
The 9-pin package used for the LM3262 has 250 micron solder balls and requires 0.225-mm pads for mounting on the circuit board. The trace to each pad must enter the pad with a 90° angle to prevent debris from being caught in deep corners. Initially, as a thermal relief, the trace to each pad must be a width of 7 mil for a section approximately 7 mil long. Each trace must neck up or down to its optimal width. The important criterion is symmetry. This ensures the solder bumps on the LM3262 re-flow evenly, and that the device solders level to the board. In particular, special attention must be paid to the pads for bumps A3 and C3. Because VIN and PGND are typically connected to large copper planes, inadequate thermal reliefs can result in late or inadequate re-flow of these bumps.
The DSBGA package is optimized for the smallest possible size in applications with red or infrared opaque cases. Because the DSBGA package lacks the plastic encapsulation characteristic of larger devices, it is vulnerable to light. Backside metallization and/or epoxy coating, along with front-side shading by the printed circuit board, reduce this sensitivity. However, the package has exposed die edges. In particular, DSBGA devices are sensitive to light, in the red and infrared range, shining on exposed die edges of the package.
TI recommends using a 10-nF capacitor between VCON and ground for non-standard ESD events or environments and manufacturing processes to prevent unexpected output voltage drift.