In-Design Return Path Analysis

When a signal is sent out from its source and arrives at its destination, it will want to return to the source. To do this, it will try to find the easiest way back through the path of the least resistance. This is a basic rule of circuit design and has been a staple of our industry.  

However, with the higher speeds of today's designs, the scenario has changed. It is essential to establish a clear return path for your signals in order to reduce electromagnetic interference (EMI). This is usually done by carefully planning the power and ground layers in a PCB stackup adjacent to signal layers that will be available for return paths.

Managing the return path of your signal is crucial to maintaining the signal integrity of your design. If you are not careful, a poorly managed return path will degrade the functionality of your circuit. 

In-Design Return Path Workflow in Sigrity Aurora allows the entire post-layout board to be analyzed quickly and easily to avoid costly return path mistakes that can cause a board to re-spin and delay a project. Anyone can run this analysis through the Workflow Manager and view the return path results directly on the canvas.

Watch the video here demonstrating the steps to determine return path issues in a PCB.

Team SimTech

Cadence Design Systems