The January issue of of PRINTED CIRCUIT DESIGN & FAB and CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY is now available. Our cover story, from Skyworks, looks at
as-shipped vs. mounted height for BGA and LGA packages.

When a component is surface-mounted to the motherboard, the x- and y- dimensions do not change. Not so for the height. LGA height increases; BGA height decreases. A new study shows how an increase in as-shipped thickness can enable greater electrical performance and reduce quality risk.

This month’s other highlights include:

• Understanding schematics
• Using Maxwell’s equations to solve transmission line problems
• Determining Df and Dk tradeoffs among various laminates
• Bare board x-ray inspection
• Busting the myth of PCB design at the college level
• A profile of EMS firm Green Circuits
• Ten steps for achieving good DfX
  
• The latest happenings among the IPC Designers Council chapters
• And Peter Bigelow asks if smaller manufacturers outmaneuvering the big ones.

Check it all out here.