Editorial Calendar
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2009 Editorial Calendar
| Issue | Cover Story | Design-Application Story | Product Roundup |
| NOV 12 | Comm Topic: Modular instrument systems for communications systems design Author: Rick Nelson Whether you are designing cellular infrastructure equipment or a mobile communications device, pulling together a complex system and making sure the communications links that hold it together are working can require coordinated, synchronized measurements, possibly at geographically dispersed test nodes. Modular instruments conforming to specs like PXI and LXI can help. This article investigates the instrument types available in modular formats and describes the advantages of each standard. |
Power Topic: Power-conversion efficiency challenges Author: Margery Conner Margery Conner, EDN’s Power Systems technical editor, works with an industry consultant on this article covering power-conversion efficiency challenges for ac/dc and dc/dc power supplies. In addition, the article looks at the paradox of power efficiency: As we develop more efficient power supplies, lights, and cars, it effectively drives the cost of energy down, and we end up consuming more of it. This is sometimes called the rebound effect, or the Khazoom-Brookes Postulate. The topic is very timely based on worldwide government programs mandating increased efficiency. |
Discrete Semi |
| NOV 26 | Consumer Topic: The concepts and realities of SSDs Author: Brian Dipert Brian Dipert explores the rapidly changing world of solid-state disks. Not a hands-on benchmarking piece, this is a more conceptual investigation. First and foremost, it will review flash-file system basics, explaining the most common questions on the subject, such as, Why don't SSDs wear out after 10,000 writes? Then the story will discuss various trade-offs that enable design optimization for performance, power consumption, cost, form factor, longevity, and/or capacity. These topics will include system- versus subsystem-based and software versus hardware issues of controller design; degree of access parallelization; flash memory component erase block size and page write size; flash memory technology options (NOR versus NAND, etc.); single- versus multilevel cell trade-offs; and related topics. |
ICs Topic: Lessons from the Last Mile Author: Ron Wilson High-definition video over Internet Protocol to the home is suddenly one of the few growing areas in a bleak electronics landscape. But the twin challenges of getting adequate bandwidth over antediluvian copper twisted pairs and of driving the cost of fiber connections down to fiber-to-the-home levels are creating their own technical stimulus package for IC designers in the telecom world. This article examines what the rest of the industry can learn from the heroic efforts of chip designers creating hardware for the Last Mile. |
Opto/Display |
| DEC 3 | Power Topic: Inverters at the heart of solar power Author: Margery Conner Solar power has received a lot of attention lately, with most of the focus on the solar cells. However, just as important to overall system efficiency is the inverter design. Solar inverters take the dc power generated at the solar-cell module and convert it to ac power. Power Systems Technical Editor Margery Conner looks at architectures and design considerations for the new breed of solar inverters. |
DSP Topic: The many paths to digital signal processing Author: Robert Cravotta Developers have many options when it comes to implementing DSP (digital signal processing) in their designs. EDN Technical Editor Robert Cravotta explores the many faces of DSP, including how these different technical approaches, such as DSP processors, FPGAs, and hardware accelerators, compete and complement each other in today's signal-processing-intense applications. |
Connectors |
| DEC 15 | Hot Technology #1 Topic: Model-based design and early verification Author: Rick Nelson Engineers can save themselves a lot of grief if they carefully evaluate their designs in software before committing to silicon or sheet metal. Model-based design and early verification tools are helping designers find inevitable mistakes early and get to market on time, whether they are developing integrated circuits or airframes. |
Hot Technology #2 Topic: Floating-gate storage in analog signal paths Author: Paul Rako Storing charge on a floating gate—a technology we normally associate with Flash memory—can have uses in analog design as well. By using the charge on the floating gate to represent an analog quantity, designers are finding that analog storage, analog multipliers, and many other components are feasible. This technology could pull some important signal-processing tasks away from DSPs and back into the analog domain. |
Power Sources |
2010 Editorial Calendar
| Issue | Cover Story | Design-Application Story | Product Roundup |
| JAN 7 | ICs Topic: Testing analog: from manual characterization to BIST Author: Ron Wilson Test engineers have made enormous strides in reducing the cost of digital IC test in recent years. But the analog and mixed-signal portions of ICs have remained a challenge. This feature examines the state of analog/mixed-signal IC test, its new ideas and hopes. |
Power Topic: Packaging is crucial to high-output LEDs Author: Margery Conner High-brightness LEDs continue to up the ante in lumens per watt. Technical Editor Margery Conner looks at the packaging techniques that enable this upward march in light efficacy. |
Discrete Semi |
| JAN 21 | Analog Topic: When integration is the wrong direction Author: Paul Rako There has been a historical tradition in electronics to integrate as many functions as possible into one chip. This articles looks at cases where dis-integrating chips is a preferable solution. Situations include where processes other than fine-line CMOS are needed for analog performance, or where the penalty to the CMOS chip far exceeds any cost advantage of integration. Other cases involve where transmission line problems from a main chip means that a peripheral chip makes sense. Specific examples include analog signal processing chips, equalizers, analog front ends, high-performance analog functions, SAW filters, ESD protected interface chips, and FET drivers. |
Embedded Topic: Embedded microprocessors: inflection points on the path to tomorrow Author: Robert Cravotta The embedded microprocessor has undergone many changes over the years—and those changes have affected how designers can use microprocessors in their designs. Technical Editor Robert Cravotta explores the inflection points of the embedded processor world to identify not only how these devices have evolved, but why and in what direction they appear to be headed. |
Opto/Display |
| FEB 4 | Wireless |
Consumer |
Passives |
| FEB 18 | Power |
Embedded |
Switches/Relays |
| MAR 4 | ICs |
Analog |
Power Sources |
| MAR 18 | Simulation |
ICs |
Amps/Osc/Mixers |
| APR 8 | Consumer |
T&M |
Discrete Semi |
| APR 22 | DSP Directory |
Analog |
Circuit Protection |
| MAY 13 | RF Design |
Consumer |
Connectors |
| MAY 27 | Sensors |
Communications |
Sensors/Transducers |
| JUN 10 | EDA |
Consumer |
Power Sources |
| JUN 24 | Embedded |
Power |
Motion |
| JUL 15 | EM Simulation |
ICs |
Opto/Display |
| JUL 29 | Consumer |
Embedded |
Passives |
| AUG 12 | SOC |
Analog |
Discrete Semi |
| AUG 26 | Power |
Embedded |
Cooling/Enclosures |
| SEP 9 | T&M |
ICs |
Switches/Relays |
| SEP 23 | Consumer |
Analog |
Power Sources |
| OCT 7 | Microprocessor Directory |
Communications |
Sensors/Transducers |
| OCT 21 | Analog |
T&M |
Amps/Osc/Mixers |
| NOV 4 | Consumer |
ICs |
Discrete Semi |
| NOV 18 | Sensors |
Analog |
Opto/Display |
| DEC 2 | Embedded |
Consumer |
Connectors |
| DEC 15 | Hot Technology #1 |
Hot Technology #2 |
Power Sources |
