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Zynq-7000 PCB Design Guide
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UG933 (v1.8) November 7, 2014
Chapter 2
PCB Technology Basics
Introduction
Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are electrical systems, with electrical properties as complicated
as the discrete components and devices mounted to them. The PCB designer has complete
control over many aspects of the PCB; however, current technology places constraints and
limits on the geometries and resulting electrical properties. The following information is
provided as a guide to the freedoms, limitations, and techniques for PCB designs using
Zynq-7000 AP SoC devices.
This chapter contains the following sections:
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PCB Structures
PCB technology has not changed significantly in the last few decades. An insulator
substrate material (usually FR4, an epoxy/glass composite) with copper plating on both
sides has portions of copper etched away to form conductive paths. Layers of plated and
etched substrates are glued together in a stack with additional insulator substrates between
the etched substrates. Holes are drilled through the stack. Conductive plating is applied to
these holes, selectively forming conductive connections between the etched copper of
different layers.
While there are advancements in PCB technology, such as material properties, the number
of stacked layers used, geometries, and drilling techniques (allowing holes that penetrate
only a portion of the stackup), the basic structures of PCBs have not changed. The
structures formed through the PCB technology are abstracted to a set of physical/electrical
structures: traces, planes (or planelets), vias, and pads.