Power plane design in PCB Design - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

This data represents PCB layers with their power plane types, voltage levels, current requirements, copper thickness, and plane area.

Cell	Value
A1	Layer
B1	Type
C1	Voltage
D1	Current (A)
E1	Copper Thickness (oz)
F1	Plane Area (cm^2)
A2	Top
B2	Power
C2	3.3V
D2	5
E2	1
F2	50
A3	Inner1
B3	Ground
C3	0V
D3	N/A
E3	1
F3	60
A4	Bottom
B4	Power
C4	5V
D4	3
E4	2
F4	40

Formula Trace

= (Current * 0.048) / (Copper Thickness * Plane Area)

Step 1: Current * 0.048

Step 2: Copper Thickness * Plane Area

Step 3: (Current * 0.048) / (Copper Thickness * Plane Area)

Cell Reference Map

    A       B        C       D       E       F
1 |Layer |Type   |Voltage|Current|Copper |Plane 
  |      |       |       | (A)   |Thickness|Area  
2 |Top   |Power  |3.3V   | 5     | 1     | 50   
3 |Inner1|Ground |0V     | N/A   | 1     | 60   
4 |Bottom|Power  |5V     | 3     | 2     | 40   

References used: D2 (Current), E2 (Copper Thickness), F2 (Plane Area) for Top layer calculation.

The formula uses current from D2, copper thickness from E2, and plane area from F2 to calculate resistance for the Top power plane.

Result

    A       B        C       D       E       F       G
1 |Layer |Type   |Voltage|Current|Copper |Plane |Resistance
  |      |       |       | (A)   |Thickness|Area  |(Ohms)  
2 |Top   |Power  |3.3V   | 5     | 1     | 50   | 0.0048 
3 |Inner1|Ground |0V     | N/A   | 1     | 60   | N/A    
4 |Bottom|Power  |5V     | 3     | 2     | 40   | N/A    

Resistance calculated only for Top layer power plane.

The final resistance value for the Top power plane is 0.0048 ohms, calculated using the formula with the given current, copper thickness, and plane area.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What is the result of multiplying current by 0.048 for the Top layer?

A 0.24

B 0.48

C 0.05

D 2.4

Key Result

Resistance estimate = (Current * 0.048) / (Copper Thickness * Plane Area)