PCB DesignPCBSync engineering tools
PCBSync engineering tools

Printed circuit board PCB design, done right.

A working reference for hardware engineers: move from schematic capture to PCB layout to manufacturing — and size real traces, impedances and vias with the calculators below. No sign-up, no fluff.

Open the calculators Schematic → Layout → Fab Design tips
Layers
4 Sig/Gnd/Pwr/Sig
Min trace
3.5mil
Via drill
0.2mm
Copper
1oz
The workflow

From a blank schematic to a board you can order

PCB design is a pipeline. Get each stage right before the next and you avoid the expensive class of mistakes — the ones you only find after the boards arrive. For the deep-dive on every step, the full PCB Design guide walks through it end to end.

STAGE 01

Schematic capture

Define intent
  • Group by function — power, MCU, analog, connectors — so the layout almost places itself.
  • Name every net. Unnamed nets are impossible to trace during routing and review.
  • Add test points on power rails, clocks, reset and comms before you route anything.
  • Drop in 0Ω / DNP footprints you might need — far cheaper than a respin.
  • Run the electrical rules check (ERC) to catch floating pins and driver conflicts early.
STAGE 02

PCB layout

Place, then route
  • Place decoupling caps hard against IC power pins; put connectors at the board edge.
  • Keep a continuous ground plane — never let a signal's return path split.
  • Route high-speed and differential nets first; fill the slow nets in around them.
  • Use 45° corners, not 90°; avoid acute angles that trap etchant (acid traps).
  • Pour copper, add teardrops, and stitch ground vias around the perimeter.
STAGE 03

Manufacturing

Release for fab
  • Export Gerber X2 + Excellon drill, or hand off native CAD if your fab accepts it.
  • Respect the fab's minimum trace / space and annular ring — tighter costs more.
  • Add fiducials, tooling holes, and panelize small boards for assembly.
  • Include a fab drawing: stackup, finish (HASL/ENIG), soldermask and impedance notes.
  • Order the bare or assembled PCB once the fab's DFM report is clean.
Engineering tools

Calculators that size your board, live

Type your numbers, read the answer. Every formula here is the industry-standard reference engineers actually use on real designs. Always round up from the result for margin.

Trace width — IPC-2221

Find the minimum copper width for a current at an allowed temperature rise. Under-sizing a power trace is a classic cause of boards that work on the bench and cook in the field.

A = ( I / (k · ΔT^0.44) )^(1/0.725)
width = A / (copper_oz · 1.378 mil)
k = 0.048 external · 0.024 internal
Model per IPC-2221A. Add margin for vias, connectors and ambient. For >10 A or tight thermal budgets, verify with your fab.
Trace width—
In millimetres—
Cross-section—

Microstrip impedance — IPC-2141

Estimate the characteristic impedance of a surface trace over a reference plane. Controlled impedance matters for USB, Ethernet, DDR and any transmission-line signal.

Z₀ = ( 87 / √(εr + 1.41) ) · ln( 5.98·h / (0.8·w + t) )
Valid roughly for 0.1 < w/h < 2.0 and 1 < εr < 15. FR-4 εr ≈ 4.2–4.5. For final stackups, get the fab's impedance-controlled values.
Impedance Z₀—
w / h ratio—

Via current capacity

Estimate how much current a single plated via can carry for a given temperature rise. Rule of thumb still applies: for real power, use several vias in parallel.

A ≈ π · d · t_plating (barrel copper)
I = k · ΔT^0.44 · A^0.725 (k = 0.048)
Thin-wall estimate using IPC-2221 external coefficients. Typical plating ≈ 1 mil (25 µm). Distribute high current across multiple vias and keep them short.
Current / via—
Barrel copper area—

LED series resistor & Ohm's law

Size the current-limiting resistor for an LED, and get the nearest standard E24 value plus the power it will dissipate — so you pick a part that won't run hot.

R = (V_supply − V_LED) / I_LED
P = (V_supply − V_LED) · I_LED
If the supply is below the LED forward voltage the LED won't light. Choose a resistor power rating at least 2× the calculated dissipation.
Exact resistor—
Nearest E24 (up)—
Power in resistor—
Before you hit release

Design-for-manufacturing checklist

Passing your CAD tool's DRC is not the same as being manufacturable. Tick these off before you generate Gerbers — your future self, waiting on a re-spin, will thank you.

0 / 0 clear

Release-readiness

Tips library

Hard-won PCB design tips, filtered

Bite-sized rules from real boards. Filter by what you're working on right now.

Design is done. Time to make boards.

Take the layout you just checked and turn it into hardware. Read the complete workflow, or send your Gerbers straight to a fab.

Read the PCB Design guide ↗ Manufacture a PCB ↗
Questions

Printed circuit board PCB design, answered

Printed circuit board PCB design is the process of turning a circuit idea into a manufacturable board. It runs from schematic capture, where you define components and how they connect, to PCB layout, where those connections become copper traces, planes and vias, and finally to fabrication outputs like Gerber and drill files.
Finish and run an ERC on the schematic, generate a netlist, then import it into the PCB editor. Place parts by function, route the critical and high-speed nets first, pour ground and power copper, and run a full DRC before export. The PCB Design guide covers the transition in detail.
It depends on current, allowed temperature rise, copper weight and whether the trace is external or internal, per IPC-2221. Use the trace width calculator above to size it, then round up for margin around vias and connectors.
A design rule check (DRC) verifies the board against the constraints you set in CAD. Design-for-manufacturing (DFM) checks whether your fab can actually build it — minimum trace and space, annular ring, drill sizes, soldermask slivers. Passing DRC does not guarantee passing DFM.
Most fabs take Gerber X2 plus an Excellon drill file, or native CAD data. For assembly, add a bill of materials, a pick-and-place file and a fabrication drawing with stackup, surface finish and impedance notes. When it's ready, order the PCB from a manufacturer.
Simple, low-density designs fit two layers. Add layers when you need a continuous reference plane for signal integrity, controlled impedance, or when routing density and BGA fan-out demand it. Four layers with dedicated ground and power planes is the usual step up from two.