Articles by Steve Sandler

This first post in a new blog series, Extreme Measurements, introduces how an extreme measurement is defined. Find out how your extreme measurement story can end up on SIJ!

In this tongue-in-cheek experiment that leads to actionable conclusions, Ben Dannan and Steve Sandler set out to discover a method to mitigate the lack of an isolation calibration step on a VNA.

A consideration that is often neglected is the impact of the self-resonant frequency (SRF) or parallel equivalent capacitance, Cp, which is related to SRF. In this article, Steve Sandler focuses on the impact of the inductor SRF on switching regulator performance.

Benjamin Dannan and Steve Sandler teamed up to explore the tradeoffs for various calibration methods and offer some recommendations and considerations to make accurate sub-milliohm impedance measurements.

This article explains the steps to use a TDR to measure very small values of inductance and capacitance, including tips for better measurements.

It pains me to say this, but there is such a thing as turning the TDR up too high and it is also easy not to have enough. If there is a “too high,” and a “not high enough,” there must also be a “just‐right,” or Goldilocks, setting. Using measurements, and a smattering of math, the Goldilocks setting answers
will be clear. Read on to find out how.

Check out this description of what is likely the fastest GaN edge-speed ever recorded.

Many designs today include three different value decoupling capacitors, or when using just one capacitor, a small value like 0.1 uF. These recommendations are based on 50-year-old assumptions that do not apply today. It is time to reconsider these out of date, legacy design guidelines.

Poor control loop stability results in degraded power supply rejection ratio, transient response, output noise, and, for mixed signal circuits, degraded jitter. Datasheet application examples and reference designs do not often include stability information, and measurements often conclude the stability is poor.

We searched for a superior cable for PDN measurements, then decided to create our own. Here’s the story.