{"id":332,"date":"2026-03-01T15:06:41","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T15:06:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/?p=332"},"modified":"2026-04-06T16:32:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T16:32:59","slug":"laboratory-power-supply","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/2026\/03\/01\/laboratory-power-supply\/","title":{"rendered":"Fedevel Academy – BUCK"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Hello everyone! Today, I am excited to share a project that marks a significant milestone in my PCB design journey. While my previous work mostly featured 2-layer boards, it was time to step into the “major leagues” and tackle professional industry standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This board was designed as part of an advanced course hosted by Robert Ferane<\/strong>c (founder of Fedevel Academy<\/strong>). Robert is a world-class expert, and his courses are renowned for their rigorous focus on the high-quality engineering standards used by top-tier tech companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technical Specifications & Stackup<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This is my first fully functional 6-layer board<\/strong>. Moving from two layers to six is more than just having extra space for traces; it requires a completely different mindset regarding signal integrity and power distribution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Layer Stackup I implemented:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • L1 (Top):<\/strong> Primary power rails.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • L2 (GND):<\/strong> Full ground plane \u2013 critical for shielding and providing a clean current return path.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • L3 \/ L4:<\/strong> High-speed signals and, Internal signal layers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • L5 (GND):<\/strong> Secondary reference plane to ensure system stability.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • L6 (Bottom):<\/strong> Bottom signal layer.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    The Heart of the System: ISL6236A<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    The centerpiece of this design is the ISL6236A<\/strong>, an advanced power controller. The design process required high precision in component configuration:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • All configuration resistors were carefully selected to allow the chip to operate in its full configuration<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • In the current setup, the circuit generates two stable output voltages: 1.5V<\/strong> and 1.05V<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • A key challenge was the layout of the high-current section, ensuring minimal current loops and efficient heat dissipation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      \n\n\n\n

      What I\u2019ve Learned<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      I completed this project step-by-step following Robert Feranec’s proven methodology. While the design process was based on the course guidelines, manually routing the entire 6-layer layout<\/strong> allowed me to truly “feel” the principles that are impossible to fully grasp on simple 2-layer boards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Through this project, I gained practical experience in:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • Ground Plane Management:<\/strong> Understanding how critical a continuous return path is to avoid interference and EMI issues.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Power Distribution Network (PDN) Optimization:<\/strong> How to properly route wide power traces and strategically place decoupling capacitors.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • High-Density Design:<\/strong> Fitting complex logic into a tight space while maintaining professional standards and serviceability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
        \n\n\n\n

        I am incredibly satisfied with the final result. Although I relied on the extensive expertise provided by Fedevel Academy, I feel that these professional design standards are now a permanent part of my engineering toolkit. This is just the beginning\u2014I am already planning future projects to apply these skills even further!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Fun Fact:<\/strong> This project feels like a full-circle moment for me. During my very first internship, when I officially started my PCB adventure, I was working on a Buck converter<\/strong> as well\u2014but back then, it was a simple 2-layer board. Seeing how far I’ve come from those first steps to this advanced 6-layer design is a huge personal win!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        See you on my next projects \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        Hello everyone! Today, I am excited to share a project that marks a significant milestone in my PCB design journey. While my previous work mostly featured 2-layer boards, it was time to step into the “major leagues” and tackle professional industry standards. This board was designed as part of an advanced course hosted by Robert … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":358,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332\/revisions\/358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pawelkur.joton.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}