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SNAA297A–September 2016–Revised September 2017
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Copyright © 2016–2017, Texas Instruments Incorporated
Optimizing Placement and Routing for Humidity Sensors
Application Report
SNAA297A–September 2016–Revised September 2017
Optimizing Placement and Routing for Humidity Sensors
Ben Kasemsadeh, Carmine Iascone
ABSTRACT
Texas Instruments’ family of Humidity-to-digital converters (HDCs) provide excellent measurement
accuracy at industry’s leading power consumption levels. In addition to AC powered applications like smart
home assistants or washer/dryers, the HDC family’s low power consumption also facilitates use in battery
powered IoT applications such as wearables or smart thermostats. Humidity-to-digital converter (HDC) ICs
are available in small packages (WSON or DSBGA) that simplify board design, and are factory calibrated
for ease of use.
In order to determine relative humidity, HDCs measure absolute humidity and ambient temperature. For
other calculations, such as calculating the dew point, determining temperature in addition to relative
humidity is also required. It is therefore necessary to consider component placement and PCB routing of
the sensor IC for both temperature and humidity measurements, even if only relative humidity is of
interest.
This application note describes techniques for accurate measurement of both temperature and humidity
levels using the HDC1010, HDC1080, and HDC2010.
Contents
1 Background................................................................................................................... 3
1.1 Humidity Parameters ............................................................................................... 3
1.2 What Is Heat Conduction?......................................................................................... 4
2 Design Guide ................................................................................................................. 6
2.1 Optimizing Air Flow ................................................................................................. 7
2.2 Minimizing Self-Heating ............................................................................................ 8
2.3 Minimizing Conducted Heat ....................................................................................... 9
2.4 Recommended PCB Layout .................................................................................... 15
3 Appendix: Determining The Dominant Thermal Conduction Path Of Selected Package Types ................ 18
3.1 Leadless Packages Without Mold Compound (WLCSP)..................................................... 18
3.2 Leadless Packages With Die Attach Pad (DFN) .............................................................. 19
4 Appendix: Determining Thermal Conduction Through The PCB..................................................... 20
4.1 General Thermal Conduction Equation......................................................................... 20
4.2 Longitudinal Thermal Conduction ............................................................................... 20
4.3 Example: Determining The Dominant Longitudinal Thermal Conduction Path ........................... 21
4.4 Perpendicular Thermal Conduction ............................................................................. 21
4.5 Thermal Conduction Through A Via ............................................................................ 22
4.6 Example: Determining The Dominant Perpendicular Thermal Conduction Path ......................... 22
List of Figures
1 Thermal Conduction Model................................................................................................. 4
2 Same Sensor Conditions and External Environmental Conditions Ensure Accurate RH Measurements ....... 6
3 Multiple Windows (Openings Not Aligned) ............................................................................... 7
4 Multiple Windows (Openings Aligned) .................................................................................... 7
5 Single Window .............................................................................................................. 7
6 Single Window (Flipped Device)........................................................................................... 7
7 Multiple Windows (Openings Not Aligned) .............................................................................. 7