Performance Advantages with MEMS Oscillators

The expanse of technology has by far exceeded our knowledge and perceptions. The days of slow electronic devices are no longer relevant. Time and again we have been awed by innovative technologies that help us overcome obstacles and reach our goals. Today is an era of speed and dazzling performance. Electronic devices such as digital cameras, gaming systems, tablets, laptops etc., have to be robust and reliable with advanced features that accelerate performance and provide quick accessibility in a cost-effective manner.

 

The simulated games are accompanied with high quality sensors and microphones to provide the customer a real-life experience.  Keeping all these requirements in consideration, those who deal with the design and manufacture of these electronic items have to implement components that incorporate the desired application qualities and provide the customers with a positive experience. Thus, there is great demand for next generation solutions that are feature-rich and provide a lower total solution cost.  When it comes to clocking choices, the newest and most promising technology is MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems) oscillators. MEMS solutions were quickly adopted into the automotive market.  Applications such as tire pressure monitoring systems and air bag sensors benefited from the precision, reliability, and total solution cost.

 

Now the MEMS oscillator is widely used in electronic applications for various computing and electronic purposes such as laptops, DVRs, set top boxes, etc. The MEMS oscillator is revolutionizing the traditional quartz-crystal oscillator as the next generation clock timing solution for a number of reasons, but most importantly because of the superior performance and lower solution cost. It provides optimal performance and flexibility due to its ability to be programmed for any frequency within the range. It provides a simplified and enhanced inventory control and management process for supply chains. It can interface with numerous SoCs and ASSPs and operate under any standard voltage condition.

 

In addition to the performance and cost advantages, the MEMS oscillator offers significantly higher reliability. It features 70kG shock and 50G vibration, which represents a 10-50x improvement compared to a quartz-crystal oscillator.  Furthermore, the MEMS oscillator eliminates any start-up issues and frequency dips that occur with quartz-crystal oscillators.

 

MEMS performance is now meeting the demands of the highest performance telecom and networking systems that could only be addressed with quartz-crystal oscillators in the past.  Specifically, frequency stability as low as 0.1ppb (parts-per-billion) and phase 0.5fs (femto-second) jitter performance, combined with the lower solution cost and improved reliability make the MEMS oscillator an ideal solution for network routers, wireless and wireline telecom infrastructure equipment, and enterprise storage applications.  All of these applications benefit from SiTime's single-ended and differential oscillators

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Programmable Clock Oscillators Provide the Right Reference Clock, Every Time

A reference clock oscillator in electronics has long been the domain of fixed-frequency devices. These devices have historically consisted of a quartz crystal, which has been cut and manufactured to operate at a precise, fixed frequency, married to an analog oscillator circuit, which operates at the same fixed frequency and a fixed voltage. The process of manufacturing these fixed-frequency oscillators has been optimized over time, and results in accurate clocking devices that are very inflexible in offering features.

 

With recent advances in semiconductor-based MEMS technology and analog circuits, these fixed frequency clock oscillators are rapidly being replaced by a programmable clock oscillator. Programmable clock oscillators use a fixed frequency MEMS resonator, married with a programmable analog circuit which can offer a host of features that are not available from fixed-frequency oscillators, such as

 

1. Any frequency within the operating range, achievable by using a highly accurate Phase Locked Loop (PLL) which can multiply the MEMS resonator frequency up to any desired frequency of operation. The output frequency is accurate up to 6 decimal places of accuracy (1 Hz). This is particularly useful in applications where non-standard frequencies are desired to improve performance and reduce error rates.

 

2. Ability to operate at any voltage between 2.5V and 3.3V, as well as 1.8V, which are the most common input-output voltages used in electronics.

 

3. Programmable drive strength control using SoftEdge technology, which allows the user to accurately match the output impedance of the clock oscillator with the trace impedance of the board, and thus reduces reflections. Higher drive strength can also be used for driving multiple loads, while lower drive strength can be used for reducing electromagnetic interference (EMI).

 

4. Ability to configure the output control pin into Output Enable or Standby

 

In the case of more-featured oscillators such as Voltage Controlled Oscillators (VCXOs) and Voltage-Controlled, Temperature Compensated Oscillators (VC TCXOs), the programmability of the device also allows easy configuration of the pull range.

 

With such a host of features available from programmable clock oscillators, it is no surprise that the devices are rapidly gaining in popularity and have already replaced a significant number of fixed frequency reference oscillators.

 

 

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Learn more about: - Silicon Oscillator , Crystal Oscillator, MEMS oscillator