Technical Consultant Zach Peterson

Currently Playing: Skip Layer Routing for RF: Control Impedance & Cut Insertion Loss

Altium Develop brings PCB design, supply chain, and manufacturing into one cloud platform so your impedance-controlled RF boards move from layout to fabricated hardware without friction: https://www.altium.com/develop?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=rf-design&utm_content=skip-layer-routing-for-rf-control-impedance-cut-insertion-loss Skip layer routing—also known as "welling down"—is an RF PCB technique for clearing ground beneath impedance-controlled traces so you can widen a line without breaking your 50 ohm target. In this Altium Academy tutorial, Zach Peterson breaks down why RF designers reference a deeper ground plane to reduce skin-effect resistance, recover insertion loss margin over long high-frequency routes, and impedance-match the oversized SMT pads found on antenna launches and coax connectors. From there, the video moves into a hands-on Altium Designer walkthrough covering impedance profile setup in the stackup manager, choosing between layer 2, layer 3, and layer 4 references, and enforcing variable trace widths through PCB design rules and net class queries. You'll also see a real RF power module routing into an SMA connector, plus guidance on when a taper is needed and which simulation tools (Simbeor, Ansys HFSS, openEMS) can verify your return loss. Watch to tighten up your RF signal integrity and route into connectors with confidence. 👉 Resources from this video: - SMA Edge Connector Transitions in an RF PCB: https://resources.altium.com/p/sma-edge-connector-transitions-rf-pcb - RF Power Amplifier Module PCB Design: https://resources.altium.com/p/rf-power-amplifier-module-pcb-design - How to Design an RF Trace Taper for Impedance Matching: https://resources.altium.com/p/rf-trace-taper - How to Design RF Trace Tapers (With Free Calculator!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCp7Y2Yjg7w - RF Power Amplifier Design: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YGwXEvqjlw 💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from @AltiumAcademy Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below! 👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1 Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content. 👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/ The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer! About Altium LLC Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products. #Altium #RFDesign #SignalIntegrity 0:00 Intro 0:48 Ground Below Traces 1:35 Digital Trace 50 Ohms 2:45 Skip Layer Routing ️ 4:00 Reduce Insertion Loss 5:41 Design Rules Setup ️ 6:41 Basic Calculation 7:30 Impedance Profile 8:18 Reference Layer 3 9:18 Apply Routing Rule ️ 10:58 RF Power Module Design 12:34 Taper Simulation 13:40 Taper Design