Knowles Blog

Electromagnetic interference degrades electronic performance and causes unintended outcomes like signal distortion, data corruption and system malfunctions.

Considering the complexities of routing and signal integrity, it’s more and more common to see multilayer printed circuit board (PCB) designs where radio frequencies (RF) or digital traces cross on different layers of the stack.

In power electronics, rectification is the conversion of alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC). After the AC signal enters a rectifier circuit consisting of power diodes, the resulting raw rectified waveform yields a series of half sine waves with significant ripple.

Supercapacitors, also known as electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs), store energy electrostatically rather than via chemical reactions like traditional batteries. Their unique characteristics make them ideal for applications requiring short bursts of power and/or durability over time.

One of the fundamental roles of capacitors is charging and discharging energy predictably. Many electronics applications leverage capacitors to store energy and release it in a controlled pulse of current or voltage.

At the most basic level, high-power amplifiers (HPAs) take signals from the waveform generator and increase the signal level to a higher power.

Supercapacitors feature unique characteristics that set them apart from traditional batteries in energy storage applications. Unlike batteries, which store energy through chemical reactions, supercapacitors store energy electrostatically, enabling rapid charge/discharge cycles.

Low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) in radio frequency (RF) receivers are designed to amplify low-amplitude signals (i.e., less than -100 dBm) from an antenna without decreasing their signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

In an ideal world, capacitors could be designed in a way where they would exhibit no resistance. However, this is physically impossible to achieve as there will always be some type of internal resistance in a capacitor that appears in series with the capacitance of the device.

Defibrillators are designed to deliver electric current to the heart, in the form of a controlled shock to the myocardium, to treat arrhythmias and restore the heartbeat back to normal.

Electrical arcing can cause any number of issues in a circuit that lead to unreliable operation. Without effective snubbing, arcing is associated with early failures in relays, switch contacts and solid-state components (e.g., SCRs and TRIACs).

When it comes to aerospace and defense applications, every single component plays a role in the success and longevity of the system. Capacitors are vital in flight control systems, radar systems, signal intelligence equipment and more.