To ensure good RF performance when designing PCBs, using the PCB layouts and component values provided by Nordic Semiconductor is highly recommended .

Documentation for the different package reference circuits, including Altium Designer files, PCB layout files, and PCB production files can be downloaded from the product page at www.nordicsemi.com.

In this section, there are reference circuits for SIxA to show the components and component values to support on-chip features in a design.

Note: This is not a complete list of configurations, but all required circuitry is shown for further configurations.

Schematic SIxA LGA127

Circuit configuration for SIxA LGA127, showing the schematic and the Bill of Materials (BOM) table.

Figure 1. Schematic SIxA with antenna details
image/svg+xml6 Reference circuitry To ensure good RF performance when designing PCBs, it is highly recommended to use the PCB layouts and component values provided by Nordic Semiconductor. Documentation for the different package reference circuits, including Altium Designer files, PCB layout files, and PCB production files can be downloaded from www.nordicsemi.com . Note : In this context reference circuitry illustrates the vehicle (i.e. nRF9160 Development Kit) applicable for the nRF9160 module granted the FCC certifications listed in Supported FCC rules on page 5 . The given reference circuity is a valid generic example of an nRF9160 based final device but does not limit the use of nRF9160 in any way. 6.1 Schematics The following figure illustrates the reference schematics of nRF9160 Development Kit. Figure 8: nRF9160 reference schematics 6.2 PCB layout The PCB layout shown in Figure 9: nRF9160 reference layout, metal layer 1 (top) on page 18 and Figure 10: nRF9160 reference layout, metal layer 2 on page 18 are part of the nRF9160 Development Kit reference layout. The figures show the PCB design details of the area where the cellular antenna is located. v1.2 17
Table 1. BOM for SIxA LGA127
Designator Value Description Footprint
C1, C7 15 pF Capacitor, NP0, ±0.1pF, 25 V 0201
C2, C4, C8, C10 100 nF Capacitor, X5R, ±10% 0201
C3, C9 47 μF Capacitor, X5R, ±20%, 10 V 0805
C5 4.7 µF Capacitor, X5R, ±20% 0402
C6 4.7 µF Capacitor, X5R, ±10%, 16 V 0805
R1 10 kΩ Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W 0201
R2 1 k Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W 0201
FB1 120 R / 0.70 A Ferrite Bead, 120 Ω @ 100 MHz, 700 mA, 130 mΩ Max 0402
U1 nRF9160-SIxA Low power System-in-Package (SiP) with integrated LTE-M/NB-IoT modem and GPS LGA

For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF9160 at www.nordicsemi.com.