Decoupling Capacitor Layout Design Guidelines for Acoustic Noise Consideration in Power Distribution Network

Acoustic noise induced by multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) in power distribution network (PDN) is a critical issue regarding product user experience. In this work, design guidelines for decoupling capacitor selection, layout geometries are proposed targeting the acoustic noise, through analysis of the acoustic noise generation mechanism in printed circuit board (PCB). A test board is designed to validate the proposed design guidelines. With sound pressure level measurement of the test vehicle, the effectiveness of the proposed design guidelines is confirmed. In general, the decoupling capacitor layout design guidelines for acoustic noise consideration are consistent with the requirements for PDN to achieve high electrical performance.