Comparing Various Measurement and Simulation Techniques for Estimating Crosstalk

Abstract

A comparison between crosstalk measurement techniques is made to investigate their applicability and efficiency for determining crosstalk between cables above a ground plane made of copper or carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP). Cost effectiveness, accuracy, speed and complexity of the methods are evaluated. All measurements are performed on two PCBs containing two pairs of copper traces. The techniques that are considered include balanced Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) measurements, balanced Spectrum Analyzer (SA) measurements, balanced EMI receiver (EMI-R) measurements, single-ended VNA measurements converted to mixed-mode S-parameters, and finally measurements with a signal generator (SG) and an oscilloscope (OSC). For verification, measured results are also compared to three simulation techniques, involving a Method of Moments simulation and two different transmission line models.