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.

In this section, there are reference circuits for QKAA aQFN™94 and CLAA WLCSP, showing the components and component values to support on-chip features in a design.

Some general guidance is summarized here:

External supply from VDD is only available when power is supplied to VDDH.
When supplying power from a USB source only, VBUS pin must be connected to VDDH pin if USB is to be used.
Components required for DC/DC function are only needed if DC/DC mode is enabled for that regulator.
NFC can be used in any configuration.
USB can be used in any configuration as long as VBUS is supplied by the USB host.
The schematics include an optional, but recommended, series resistor on the USB supply for improved immunity to transient over-voltage during VBUS connection.

Table 1. Circuit configurations for QKAA aQFN™94
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 1	Battery/Ext. regulator	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Config. 2	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Config. 3	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	No	No
Config. 4	USB (VDDH = VBUS)	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No

Table 2. Circuit configurations for CLAA WLCSP
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 1	Battery/Ext. regulator	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Config. 2	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Config. 3	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	No	No
Config. 4	USB (VDDH = VBUS)	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No

Circuit configuration no. 1 for QKAA aQFN94

Circuit configuration number 1 for QKAA aQFN™94 is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 3. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 1
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 1	Battery/Ext. regulator	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No

Figure 1. Circuit configuration no. 1 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 4. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 1
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C16	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C10, C11, C12, C13, C14, C15	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C17, C20	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C18	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C19	2.2 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C21	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L2, L3	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
L4	10 µH	Inductor, 80 mA, ±20%	0603
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-QKAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth® Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	AQFN-94
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 2 for QKAA aQFN94

Circuit configuration number 2 for QKAA aQFN™94 is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 5. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 2
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 2	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes

Figure 2. Circuit configuration no. 2 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 6. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 2
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C16	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C10, C11, C12, C13, C14, C15	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C17	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C18	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C21	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
CT1, CT2, CT3, CT4	Antenna dependent	Capacitor, NP0, ±5%	0201
L1	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L2, L3	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-QKAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	AQFN-94
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 3 for QKAA aQFN94

Circuit configuration number 3 for QKAA aQFN™94 is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 7. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 3
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 3	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	No	No

Figure 3. Circuit configuration no. 3 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 8. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 3
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C16	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C10, C11, C12, C13, C14, C15	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C21	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L2, L3	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
U1	nRF5340-QKAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	AQFN-94
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 4 for QKAA aQFN94

Circuit configuration number 4 for QKAA aQFN™94 is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 9. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 4
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 4	USB (VDDH = VBUS)	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No

Figure 4. Circuit configuration no. 4 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 10. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 4
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C10, C11, C12, C13, C14, C15	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C17	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C18	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C19	2.2 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C21	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-QKAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	AQFN-94
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 1 for CLAA WLCSP

Circuit configuration number 1 for CLAA WLCSP is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 11. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 1
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 1	Battery/Ext. regulator	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No

Figure 5. Circuit configuration no. 1 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 12. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 1
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C10, C14, C17	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C11, C12, C13	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C15, C18	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C16	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C19	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1, L2	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L3, L4	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
L5	10 µH	Inductor, 80 mA, ±20%	0603
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-CLAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	WLCSP-95
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 2 for CLAA WLCSP

Circuit configuration number 2 for CLAA WLCSP is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 13. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 2
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 2	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes

Figure 6. Circuit configuration no. 2 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 14. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 2
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C10, C14	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C11, C12, C13	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C15	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C16	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C19	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
CT1, CT2, CT3, CT4	Antenna dependent	Capacitor, NP0, ±5%	0201
L1, L2	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L3, L4	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-CLAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	WLCSP-95
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 3 for CLAA WLCSP

Circuit configuration number 3 for CLAA WLCSP is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 15. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 3
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 3	N/A	Battery/Ext. regulator	No	No	Yes	No	No

Figure 7. Circuit configuration no. 3 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 16. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 3
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C10, C14	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C11, C12, C13	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C19	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1, L2	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
L3, L4	10 µH	Inductor, 50 mA, ±20%	0603
U1	nRF5340-CLAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	WLCSP-95
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

Circuit configuration no. 4 for CLAA WLCSP

Circuit configuration number 4 for CLAA WLCSP is showing the schematic and the bill of materials table.

Table 17. Configuration summary for circuit configuration no. 4
Config no.	Supply configuration		Enabled features
Config no.	VDDH	VDD	EXTSUPPLY	DCDC on VREGH	DCDC on VREGMAIN and VREGRADIO	USB	NFC
Config. 4	USB (VDDH = VBUS)	N/A	No	No	No	Yes	No

Figure 8. Circuit configuration no. 4 schematic

Note: For PCB reference layouts, see the product page for the nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Table 18. Bill of material for circuit configuration no. 4
Designator	Value	Description	Footprint
C1	0.7 pF	Capacitor, NP0, ±0.05 pF	0201
C2, C3, C5, C7, C10, C17	1.0 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0402
C4	2.2 nF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0201
C6, C8, C9, C11, C12, C13	100 nF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0201
C15	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7S, ±10%	0603
C16	4.7 µF	Capacitor, X7R, ±10%	0603
C19	N.C.	Not mounted	0201
L1, L2	2.2 nH	High frequency chip inductor, ±5%	0201
R1	2.2 Ω	Resistor, ±1%, 0.05 W	0201
U1	nRF5340-CLAA	Multiprotocol Bluetooth Low Energy, IEEE 802.15.4, ANT, and 2.4GHz proprietary System on Chip	WLCSP-95
X1	32 MHz	Crystal SMD 2016, 32 MHz, Cl=8 pF, Total Tol: ±30 ppm. For frequency tolerance requirements, see 32 MHz crystal oscillator (HFXO).	XTAL_2016
X2	32.768 kHz	Crystal SMD 2012, 32.768 kHz, Cl=9 pF, Total Tol: ±50 ppm	XTAL_2012

PCB layout example

The PCB layout in the following figure is a reference layout for Circuit configuration no. 1 for QKAA aQFN™94.

Note: Pay attention to how the capacitor C1 is grounded. It is not directly connected to the ground plane, but grounded via pin J31 and to the VSS die pad. This is done to create additional filtering of harmonic components.

For all available reference layouts, see the product page for nRF5340 on www.nordicsemi.com.

Figure 9. Top silk layer

Figure 10. Top layer

Figure 11. Mid layer 1

Figure 12. Mid layer 2

Figure 13. Bottom layer

PMIC support

The nRF53 Series is comprehensively supported by Nordic Semiconductor's own range of PMICs (Power Management Integrated Circuits). These PMICs are meticulously designed to enhance the performance and efficiency of the nRF53 Series devices. This integration ensures the longest battery life and the highest reliability for the end application. The synergy between the nRF53 Series and the Nordic PMICs highlights Nordic Semiconductor's commitment to providing a complete and cohesive solution for their customers' needs in wireless technology applications.