What are the best practices to reduce EMI when using a board to board (BTB) connector?
• We are addressing open pin field connectors like the Samtec QSE/QTE or SEAM/SEAF series, not a coaxial RF connector configured for BTB applications • We are primarily interested in digital applications that span kbps to Gbps data rates. We are not addressing very low frequency analog (audio) type applications. • The connectors are part of an overall interconnect system that can include printed circuit boards (PCBs). It is important to understand the radiation mechanism or dominant EMI antennas in a BTB system. One analogy that works well is to consider the PCB ground planes as elements of a microstrip patch antenna. Any longitudinal voltage potential developed across the connector appears as a voltage source which serves to drive the PCB ground planes, not unlike a feed element driving a microstrip patch antenna. This is a useful low frequency (50 MHz to 100’s of MHz) approximation; at higher frequencies the radiating system is more complex but the best practices remain the same. To
