https://devzone.nordicsemi.com/f/nordic-q-a/77804/can-i-program-a-chip-without-the-boardHello, I&#39;m currently planning a product that involves Bluetooth technology and came across the NRF5340 chip. I see that I can get the development kit which is a board with the chip and all GPIOs like an Arduino board which will be great for testing buten-USTelligent Community 13Fri, 23 Jul 2021 13:54:07 GMThttps://devzone.nordicsemi.com/thread/321587?ContentTypeID=1Fri, 23 Jul 2021 13:54:07 GMT137ad170-7792-4731-bb38-c0d22fbe4515:b2572d3b-9707-4d88-9110-d5e919de4fadJared<p>Hi,</p> <p>The nRF5340 supports the SWD protocol, which means that you can use a <a href="https://www.segger.com/products/debug-probes/j-link/">J-link stand alone debugger from SEGGER </a>to program the IC. However, the IC itself needs some external components to function properly, such as decoupling capacitors, crystals and DCDC components. What is necessary depends on how you&#39;re going to use the IC, <a href="https://www.nordicsemi.com/-/media/Software-and-other-downloads/Reference-Layouts/nRF5340/nRF5340-xxAA-Reference-Layout-1_1.zip">our reference design</a> shows the possible configurations, and the minimum that is required on a custom board for the nRF to function properly. Designing a custom board is not an easy task, and requires a bit of experience regarding the RF part.&nbsp;</p> <p>regards</p> <p>Jared</p><div style="clear:both;"></div>