This thread has been locked.

If you have a related question, please click the "Ask a related question" button in the top right corner. The newly created question will be automatically linked to this question.

IWR6843ISK-ODS: RF antenna geometry and PCB fab house used

Part Number: IWR6843ISK-ODS

Hi support team,


I have a couple of questions related to PCB fabrication of EVM IWR6843ISK-ODS (PROC075). 


Question 1: There is a slight difference between the antenna structure in the Altium design/DXF file compared to the actual PROC075 Rev A fabricated board. See PDF attachment for images

  • Altium design & DXF: Notice the slight RF trace notch into the antenna structure (blue arrows).
  • EVM: Notch is missing on actual fabricated mmWave EVM boards. 

Is this difference intentional?
How does this affect antenna performance?

Question 2: Kindly provide the contact information of the bare PCB fabrication house that built the bare PCBs for IWR6843ISK-ODS (PROC075).

Looking forward to your response.
Christian.

EVM_Boards.pdf

  • Christian,

        Your observations are fair, This difference is not an intentional In one of the PCB build, a small number of boards had a fabrication issue where during the PCB fabrication process this notch has been not been etched, Instead full patch is present.

    In the actual antenna design these notches need to be present this provides better matching of transmission line to antenna. Due to this artifact there may be slight reduction in the field of view and possible reduction in the range that antenna could see.However this has been rectified in the latest builds. 

    If you are planning to build antenna on your hardware please ensure these notches are present and dimensions that are mentioned in the Altium design database. 

    There are many fab vendors for the PCB manufacturing, However you could contact SVTRONICS inquiry on this. 

    Thanks and regards,

    CHETHAN KUMAR Y.B.

  • Hi Chethan,

    Thank you for the confirmation and feedback.

    Christian.