1
Radios, how do they work?
A brief introduction to antennas, superheterodyne receivers, and signal modulation schemes.
Michał Zalewski (lcamtuf)
geek culture, algorithms, electronic circuit design, and chainsaw safety tips. Click to read lcamtuf’s thing, a Substack publication with thousands of subscribers.
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- 50
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- #57 personal
Visit lcamtuf.substack.com → RSS feedOn Hacker News Oct 2022 – Jul 2026
Hardware & Electronics 21Science & Space 20Society, Policy & Culture 12Math & Algorithms 10Life, Learning & Writing 8Tech Industry & Business 7
2
Investigating an “evil” RJ45 dongle
Reverse-engineering hardware can be difficult -- but sometimes, all you need is a comfy armchair and some Google Translate.
3
But good sir, what is electricity?
A quick look at the physics of conductors, insulators, and electric charges.
4
Things you can do with diodes
Paying homage to the component we usually don't think about.
5
The magic of DC-DC voltage conversion (2023)
Resistor-based dividers, linear regulators, buck converters, and other ways to adjust voltages.
6
7
A nicer voltmeter clock
Sometimes, electronic circuit design is mostly about wood
8
Setting up an electronics workshop
A minimalist, non-commercial take on a handful of indispensable workshop tools.
9
PCBs, copper pours, ground planes, and you
A closer look at a fashion trend in printed circuit board design.
10
It's hard to build an oscillator
Especially if you want it to work.
11
Comparing Hobby PCB Vendors
An not-for-profit roundup of affordable PCB manufacturers. Originally published in 2023 and last updated January 2026.
12
Now you're thinking with relays
Tinkering with relay-based logic just for the fun of it.
13
Signal reflections in electronic circuits
What are "signal reflections", really? And do they matter in circuit design?
14
The basics of decoupling capacitors
How to stabilize digital supply voltages - and why most of the online advice on this topic is suspect.
15
How do transistors work, anyway?
The internet is littered with explanations of how transistors work. Most of them don't really explain anything.
16
Choosing an op-amp for your project
Just say no to LM741 and LM324 / LM358.
17
PSA: If you're a fan of ATmega, try AVR Dx
A little-known offshoot of the ATmega series of 8-bit microcontrollers is better, faster, and cheaper than its progenitor.
18
The 101 of analog signal filtering (2024)
Some intuition about this topic can be developed without summoning the ghost of Pierre-Simon Laplace.
19
Cursed circuits #5: capacitance multiplier
Capacitor vendors don't want you to know this! Save money on capacitors by spending more on other components
20
Deep dive: the instability of op-amps
A closer look at op-amp feedback loops and the stability criteria for circuits that use them.
21
The marvelous disappearing capacitor
The performance of photodiode amplifiers can be improved in a clever way.