Oscillators

What is an oscillator? An oscillator is a circuit that creates a waveform output from a direct current input. The two main types of oscillator are harmonic and relaxation. The harmonic oscillators have smooth curved waveforms, while relaxation oscillators have waveforms with sharp changes.
It may also be termed as a circuit that generates an RF output signal through feedback and amplification. The oscillator contains a path whereby part of the output signal is fed back to the input. A circuit containing an active device with feedback elements must have the feedback signal larger than, and in-phase with, the input signal for the oscillator to sustain oscillation. The most common types of waveforms produced by an oscillator are sinusoidal and square.

How Oscillators Work

A basic oscillator is a capacitor and inductor connected together. As the capacitor discharges, the current creates a magnetic field in the inductor. When the capacitor is fully discharged, the field collapses and induces an opposite current that charges the capacitor again. This cycle continues until all the energy is lost through resistance. The frequency of the oscillations depends on the size of the capacitor and inductor. Every component has some inherent electrical noise, and this noise provides the initial signal for an oscillator. The output noise is sent back to the input as feedback to be filtered and amplified. This process eventually turns the noise into a steady signal.

I--Harmonic Oscillators
These are also called sine-wave or sinusoidal oscillators because their output is a sine-wave. There are many different ways of combining components to form these oscillators, and each type has different properties. For example, the Colpitts oscillator uses a voltage divider for feedback, while the Armstrong oscillator uses two inductor coils.

II--Relaxation Oscillators
These are also called non-sinusoidal oscillators because their distinctive sharp waveforms are created by non-linear events, such as a sudden capacitor discharge. The frequency of the output signal can be changed by altering the time it takes the capacitor to build up it's charge. It is often used to produce a non-sinusoidal output, such as a square wave or sawtooth. The oscillator contains a nonlinear component such as a transistor that periodically discharges the energy stored in a capacitor or inductor, causing abrupt changes in the output waveform. Square-wave relaxation oscillators can be used to provide the clock signal for sequential logic circuits such as timers and counters, although crystal oscillators are often preferred for their greater stability.

Triangle-wave or saw-tooth oscillators are used in the time-base circuits that generate the horizontal deflection signals for cathode ray tubes in analogue oscilloscopes and television sets. In function generators, this triangle wave may then be further shaped into a close approximation of a sine wave. Other types of relaxation oscillators include the multivibrator and the rotary traveling wave oscillator. Relaxation oscillators, such as the crystal oscillator, are used as timers and switches in many devices, like digital watches, televisions and computers.

Oscillator Uses
Harmonic oscillator
The harmonic, or linear, oscillator produces a sinusoidal output. The basic form of a harmonic oscillator is an electronic amplifier with the output attached to an electronic filter, and the output of the filter attached to the input of the amplifier, in a feedback loop. When the power supply to the amplifier is first switched on, the amplifier's output consists only of noise. The noise travels around the loop, being filtered and re-amplified until it increasingly resembles the desired signal. A piezoelectric crystal (commonly quartz) may take the place of the filter to stabilise the frequency of oscillation, resulting in a crystal oscillator. Transmitters use harmonic oscillators to create the carrier wave that carries their signal, and radios use them to demodulate the wave to get that signal. There are many ways to implement harmonic oscillators, because there are different ways to amplify and filter. For example:

Sr. No.

Type of oscillator

Uses & Remarks

Armstrong oscillator

It is sometimes called a tickler oscillator because the feedback needed to produce oscillations is provided using a tickler coil via magnetic coupling between coil L and coil T. Assuming the coupling is weak, but sufficient to sustain oscillation, the frequency is determined primarily by the tank circuit (L and C in the illustration) and is approximately given by . In a practical circuit, the actual oscillation frequency will be slightly different from the value provided by this formula because of stray capacitance and inductance, internal losses (resistance), and the loading of the tank circuit by the tickler coil. This circuit is the basis of the regenerative receiver for 2

amplitude modulated radio signals. In that application, an antenna is attached to an additional tickler coil, and the feedback is adjusted, so the circuit is just short of oscillation. The result is a narrow-band radio-frequency filter and amplifier. The non-linear characteristic of the transistor or tube provides the demodulated audio signal. Use of Armstrong oscillator is not used commonly as most designers avoid transformers wherever possible. Transformers are not as easy to work with as capacitors. The Hartley oscillator was extensively used on all broadcast bands including the FM 88-108MHz band. An example is given of the Scott 310E RF oscillator for its FM section. The Hartley oscillator is an LC electronic oscillator that derives its feedback from a tapped coil in parallel with a capacitor (the tank circuit). Although there is no requirement for there to be mutual coupling between the two coil segments, the circuit is usually implemented as such. A Hartley oscillator is essentially any configuration that uses a pair of series-connected coils and a single capacitor. FETs are commonly used as amplifiers. A Colpitts oscillator, named after its inventor Edwin H. Colpitts, [1] is one of a number of designs for electronic oscillator circuits using the combination of an inductance (L) with a capacitor (C) for frequency determination, thus also called LC oscillator. One of the key features of this type of oscillator is its simplicity (needs only a single inductor) and robustness. Due to limitation of op amps in handling the wide frequency range (1 to 500 M Hz), FET or Bipolar transistors are commonly used as amplifiers. The frequency is generally determined by the inductance and the two capacitors. The Colpitts oscillator (1 to 500 M Hz) is widely used for variable frequency oscillations VFO . It is best done by using a variable inductance for tuning, instead of tuning one of the two capacitors. If tuning by a variable capacitor is needed, it should be a third one connected in parallel to the inductor The Clapp oscillator is a refinement of Colpitts oscillator with an additional capacitor placed in series with the inductor. The oscillation frequency in hertz (cycles per second) is more stable and accurate and field-effect transistor are generally used. A Clapp circuit is often preferred over a Colpitts circuit for constructing a variable frequency oscillator (VFO). In a Colpitts 3

Hartley oscillator

Colpitts oscillator

Clapp oscillator

VFO, the voltage divider contains the variable capacitor (either C1 or C2). This causes the feedback voltage to be variable as well, sometimes making the Colpitts circuit less likely to achieve oscillation over a portion of the desired frequency range. This problem is avoided in the Clapp circuit by using fixed capacitors in the voltage divider and a variable capacitor (C0) in series with the inductor. Vak oscillator 5 The Czech engineer Ji Vack published in 1949 a paper on the design of stable oscillators. As a result of his in-depth analysis of (vacuum tube) oscillators, he proposed a variant of a Colpitts oscillator, where an additional capacitive voltage divider on the grid input reduces the feedback voltage to the necessary amount and at the same time reduces the unwanted, unstable tube capacitances. An opto-electronic oscillator (OEO) is an optoelectronic circuit that produces repetitive electronic sine wave and/or modulated optical continuous wave signals. An opto-electronic oscillator is based on converting the continuous light energy from a pump laser to radio frequency (RF) and microwave signals. The OEO is characterized by having very high quality factor (Q) and stability, as well as other functional characteristics that are not readily achieved with electronic oscillators. Its unique behavior results from the use of electrooptical (E/O) and photonic components, which are generally characterized with high efficiency, high speed, and low dispersion in the microwave frequency regime. Pierce oscillator (crystal) When accuracy and stability are much more important quartz -crystal oscillators are most commonly used, as resonant frequency is almost unaffected by transistor and stray capacitances. Electrically it is equivalent to a large inductor in series with a small capacitor 9similar to a clapp). Almost all broadcasting transmitters are equipped with important quartz -crystal oscillators. The Pierce oscillator is a type of electronic oscillator circuit particularly well-suited for implementing crystal oscillator circuits. Named for its inventor, George W. Pierce (1872-1956). It is a derivative of the Colpitts oscillator. Virtually all digital IC clock oscillators are of Pierce type, as the circuit can be implemented using a minimum of components: a single digital inverter, two resistors, two capacitors, and the quartz crystal, which acts as a highly selective filter element. The low manufacturing cost of this circuit, combined with the outstanding frequency stability of the 4

OptoElectronic Oscillator.

quartz crystal, give it an advantage over other designs in many consumer electronics applications. Phase-shift oscillator 8 RC oscillator (Wien Bridge and "TwinT")

Widely used in fixed frequency audio generators, for example as a Tone Generator. The Wien Bridge is often used in audio signal generators because it can be easily tuned using a two-section variable capacitor or a two section variable potentiometer (which is more easily obtained than a variable capacitor suitable for generation at low frequencies).

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It is considered to be a standard oscillator circuit (a industry standard) for low to moderate frequency (5 hz to 1 M Hz), almost always used in commercial variable audio frequency generators. Cross-coupled A low-frequency oscillator (LFO) is an electronic oscillator that LC oscillator generates an AC waveform at a frequency below 20 Hz. This term is typically used in the field of audio synthesizers, to distinguish it from an audio frequency oscillator. Oscillators designed to produce a high-power AC output from a DC supply are usually called inverters. Relaxation oscillators A relaxation oscillator is an oscillator in which a capacitor is charged gradually and then discharged rapidly. It is usually implemented with a resistor or current source, a capacitor, and a "threshold" device such as a neon lamp, This type of circuit was used as the time base in early oscilloscopes and television receivers. Variants of this circuit find use in stroboscopes used in machine shops and nightclubs. Electronic camera flashes are a monostable version of this circuit, generating one cycle of the sawtooth, the rising edge as the flash capacitor is charged and the rapid falling edge as the capacitor is discharged and the flash is produced upon receiving the firing signal from the shutter button. Use as a timebase in oscilloscopes was discontinued when the much more linear Miller Integrator timebase circuit using "hard" valves, (vacuum tubes) as a constant current source, was developed. Square-wave relaxation oscillators can be used to provide the clock signal for sequential logic circuits such as timers and counters, although crystal oscillators are often preferred for their greater stability.

11 (A group)

Types of Crystal oscillators and their typical uses.

MCXO (Microcomputer-Compensated Crystal Oscillators) MCXOs are often used in Spread Spectrum System Clocks, MTI Radars, Wireless Base Stations, Telecom Timing Modules, and Precision Test Equipment OCVCXO (Oven-Controlled Voltage-Controlled Crystal Oscillators) OCVCXOs are often used in Navigation System Clocks, Frequency Standards, MTI Radars, Wireless Base Stations, Telecom Timing Modules, Precision Test Equipment, and Phase Lock Loop (PLL) circuits in Telecom Timing Recovery, Wireless Base Station Channel or Timing Reference and Fiber Optic Timing Reference. OCXO (Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator) This is the highest precision quartz frequency reference available. The crystal is kept at a constant temperature inside an enclosure (oven). Applications for this type of device include Wireless Base Stations, Telecom Timing Modules, and Precision Test Equipment. RbXO (Rubidium Crystal Oscillators) RbXOs are often used in satellite terminals and bistatic and multistatic radar. TCVCXO (Temperature-Compensated-Voltage Controlled Crystal Oscillators) TCVCXOs are often used for frequency control in Tactical Radios, Telecom Timing Modules, Wireless Systems, and reference oscillators. TCXO (Temperature Compensated Crystal Oscillator) This device uses a temperature compensation circuit in the oscillator to achieve a stabilized quartz frequency reference. The quartz reference is not enclosed like an OCXO, therefore not as accurate, but is smaller and uses less power to operate. Applications include Telecom Timing Modules and Wireless Systems Reference Oscillators (Microwave, etc.) VCTCXO (Voltage Controlled Temperature Compensated Crystal Oscillator) A VCTCXO has an electronic frequency modulation input pin to control the output frequency and uses a temperature compensation circuit in the oscillator to achieve a stabilized quartz frequency reference. Applications include Phase Lock Loop (PLL) circuits in Telecom Timing Modules, and Wireless Systems Reference Oscillators (Microwave). VCXO (Voltage Controlled Crystal Oscillator) The VCXO is a crystal oscillator with an electronic frequency modulation input pin to control the output frequency. Applications include Phase Lock Loop (PLL) circuits in Telecom Timing Recovery, Wireless Base Station Channel or Timing Reference, Fiber Optic Timing Reference XO (Clock Oscillator) 6

An XO is a simple Crystal Oscillator. Used as frequency timing reference in Microprocessor circuits, Telecom Timing Circuits, Ethernet Transceivers, etc.

Crystal oscillator

A miniature 4 MHz quartz crystal enclosed in a hermetically sealed HC-49/US package, used as the resonator in a crystal oscillator. A crystal oscillator is an electronic circuit that uses the mechanical resonance of a vibrating crystal of piezoelectric material to create an electrical signal with a very precise frequency. This frequency is commonly used to keep track of time (as in quartz wristwatches), to provide a stable clock signal for digital integrated circuits, and to stabilize frequencies for radio transmitters and receivers. The most common type of piezoelectric resonator used is the quartz crystal, so oscillator circuits designed around them were called "crystal oscillators".

History

Inside construction of a modern high performance HC-49 package quartz crystal Piezoelectricity was discovered by Jacques and Pierre Curie in 1880. Paul Langevin first investigated quartz resonators for use in sonar during World War I. The first crystal controlled oscillator, using a crystal of Rochelle salt, was built in 1917 and patented[1] in 1918 by Alexander M. Nicholson at Bell Telephone Laboratories, although his priority was disputed by Walter Guyton Cady.[2] Cady built the first quartz crystal oscillator in 1921. [3] Other early innovators in quartz crystal oscillators include G. W. Pierce and Louis Essen. 7

Quartz crystal oscillators were developed for high-stability frequency references during the 1920s and 1930s. By 1926 quartz crystals were used to control the frequency of radio broadcasting stations and were popular with amateur radio operators. A number of firms started producing quartz crystals for electronic use during this time. Using what are now considered primitive methods, about 100,000 crystal units were produced in the United States during 1939. During WW2, demand for accurate frequency control of military radio equipment spurred rapid development of the crystal manufacturing industry. Suitable quartz became a critical war material, with much of it imported from Brazil. Although crystal oscillators still most commonly use quartz crystals, devices using other materials are becoming more common, such as ceramic resonators.

Operation
A crystal is a solid in which the constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are packed in a regularly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. Almost any object made of an elastic material could be used like a crystal, with appropriate transducers, since all objects have natural resonant frequencies of vibration. For example, steel is very elastic and has a high speed of sound. It was often used in mechanical filters before quartz. The resonant frequency depends on size, shape, elasticity, and the speed of sound in the material. High-frequency crystals are typically cut in the shape of a simple, rectangular plate. Lowfrequency crystals, such as those used in digital watches, are typically cut in the shape of a tuning fork. For applications not needing very precise timing, a low-cost ceramic resonator is often used in place of a quartz crystal. When a crystal of quartz is properly cut and mounted, it can be made to distort in an electric field by applying a voltage to an electrode near or on the crystal. This property is known as piezoelectricity. When the field is removed, the quartz will generate an electric field as it returns to its previous shape, and this can generate a voltage. The result is that a quartz crystal behaves like a circuit composed of an inductor, capacitor and resistor, with a precise resonant frequency. Quartz has the further advantage that its elastic constants and its size change in such a way that the frequency dependence on temperature can be very low. The specific characteristics will depend on the mode of vibration and the angle at which the quartz is cut (relative to its crystallographic axes).[5] Therefore, the resonant frequency of the plate, which depends on its size, will not change much, either. This means that a quartz clock, filter or oscillator will remain accurate. For critical applications the quartz oscillator is mounted in a temperature-controlled container, called a crystal oven, and can also be mounted on shock absorbers to prevent perturbation by external mechanical vibrations. Quartz timing crystals are manufactured for frequencies from a few tens of kilohertz to tens of megahertz. More than two billion (2109) crystals are manufactured annually. Most are small devices for consumer devices such as wristwatches, clocks, radios, computers, and cellphones. Quartz crystals are also found inside test and measurement equipment, such as counters, signal generators, and oscilloscopes.

Modeling
Electrical model

Electronic symbol for a piezoelectric crystal resonator

Schematic symbol and equivalent circuit for a quartz crystal in an oscillator

Resonance modes
A quartz crystal provides both series and parallel resonance. The series resonance is a few kilohertz lower than the parallel one. Crystals below 30 MHz are generally operated between series and parallel resonance, which means that the crystal appears as an inductive reactance in operation. Any additional circuit capacitance will thus pull the frequency down. For a parallel resonance crystal to operate at its specified frequency, the electronic circuit has to provide a total parallel capacitance as specified by the crystal manufacturer. Crystals above 30 MHz (up to >200 MHz) are generally operated at series resonance where the impedance appears at its minimum and equal to the series resistance. For these crystals the series resistance is specified (<100 ) instead of the parallel capacitance. To reach higher frequencies, a crystal can be made to vibrate at one of its overtone modes, which occur at multiples of the fundamental resonant frequency. Only odd numbered overtones are used. Such a crystal is referred to as a 3rd, 5th, or even 7th overtone crystal. To accomplish this, the oscillator circuit usually includes additional LC circuits to select the wanted overtone.

Temperature effects
A crystal's frequency characteristic depends on the shape or 'cut' of the crystal. A tuning fork crystal is usually cut such that its frequency over temperature is a parabolic curve centered around 25 C. This means that a tuning fork crystal oscillator will resonate close to its target 9

frequency at room temperature, but will slow down when the temperature either increases or decreases from room temperature. A common parabolic coefficient for a 32 kHz tuning fork crystal is 0.04 ppm/C.

In a real application, this means that a clock built using a regular 32 kHz tuning fork crystal will keep good time at room temperature, lose 2 minutes per year at 10 degrees Celsius above (or below) room temperature and lose 8 minutes per year at 20 degrees Celsius above (or below) room temperature due to the quartz crystal.

Electrical oscillators

A crystal used in hobby radio control equipment to select frequency. The crystal oscillator circuit sustains oscillation by taking a voltage signal from the quartz resonator, amplifying it, and feeding it back to the resonator. The rate of expansion and contraction of the quartz is the resonant frequency, and is determined by the cut and size of the crystal. When the energy of the generated output frequencies matches the losses in the circuit, an oscillation can be sustained. A regular timing crystal contains two electrically conductive plates, with a slice or tuning fork of quartz crystal sandwiched between them. During startup, the circuit around the crystal applies a random noise AC signal to it, and purely by chance, a tiny fraction of the noise will be at the resonant frequency of the crystal. The crystal will therefore start oscillating in synchrony with that signal. As the oscillator amplifies the signals coming out of the crystal, the signals in the crystal's frequency band will become stronger, eventually dominating the output of the oscillator. Natural resistance in the circuit and in the quartz crystal filter out all the unwanted frequencies. The output frequency of a quartz oscillator can be either the fundamental resonance or a multiple of the resonance, called an overtone frequency. High frequency crystals are often designed to operate at third, fifth, or seventh overtones. A major reason for the wide use of crystal oscillators is their high Q factor. A typical Q value for a quartz oscillator ranges from 104 to 106, compared to perhaps 102 for an LC oscillator. The maximum Q for a high stability quartz oscillator can be estimated as Q = 1.6 107/f, where f is the resonance frequency in megahertz. One of the most important traits of quartz crystal oscillators is that they can exhibit very low phase noise. In many oscillators, any spectral energy at the resonant frequency will be amplified 10

by the oscillator, resulting in a collection of tones at different phases. In a crystal oscillator, the crystal mostly vibrates in one axis, therefore only one phase is dominant. This property of low phase noise makes them particularly useful in telecommunications where stable signals are needed, and in scientific equipment where very precise time references are needed. Environmental changes of temperature, humidity, pressure, and vibration can change the resonant frequency of a quartz crystal, but there are several designs that reduce these environmental effects. These include the TCXO, MCXO, and OCXO (defined below). These designs (particularly the OCXO) often produce devices with excellent short-term stability. The limitations in short-term stability are due mainly to noise from electronic components in the oscillator circuits. Long term stability is limited by aging of the crystal. Due to aging and environmental factors (such as temperature and vibration), it is difficult to keep even the best quartz oscillators within one part in 1010 of their nominal frequency without constant adjustment. For this reason, atomic oscillators are used for applications requiring better long-term stability and accuracy. Although crystals can be fabricated for any desired resonant frequency, within technological limits, in actual practice today engineers design crystal oscillator circuits around relatively few standard frequencies, such as 3.58 MHz, 10 MHz, 14.318 MHz, 20 MHz, 33.33 MHz, and 40 MHz. The vast popularity of the 3.58 MHz and 14.318 MHz crystals is attributed initially to low cost resulting from economies of scale resulting from the popularity of television and the fact that this frequency is involved in synchronizing to the colorburst signal necessary to display color on an NTSC or PAL based television set. Using frequency dividers, frequency multipliers and phase locked loop circuits, it is practical to derive a wide range of frequencies from one reference frequency. Care must be taken to use only one crystal oscillator source when designing circuits to avoid subtle failure modes of metastability in electronics. If this is not possible, the number of distinct crystal oscillators, PLLs, and their associated clock domains should be rigorously minimized, through techniques such as using a subdivision of an existing clock instead of a new crystal source. Each new crystal source must be rigorously justified, since each one introduces new, difficult-to-debug probabilistic failure modes, due to multiple crystal interactions.

Spurious frequencies
For crystals operated in series resonance, significant (and temperature-dependent) spurious responses may be experienced. These responses typically appear some tens of kilohertz above the wanted series resonance. Even if the series resistances at the spurious resonances appear higher than the one at wanted frequency, the oscillator may lock at a spurious frequency (at some temperatures). This is generally avoided by using low impedance oscillator circuits to enhance the series resistance differences.

Commonly used crystal frequencies

Crystals can be manufactured for oscillation over a wide range of frequencies, from a few kilohertz up to several hundred megahertz. Many applications call for a crystal oscillator frequency conveniently related to some other desired frequency, so certain crystal frequencies are made in large quantities and stocked by electronics distributors.

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Frequency (MHz) 0.032768 1.8432 2.4576 3.2768 3.575611 3.579545 3.582056 3.686400 4.096000 4.194304 4.332 4.43361875 4.9152 6.144 6.5536 7.15909 7.3728 8.86724 9.216 9.83040 10.245 11.0592 11.2896 12.0000 12.288 13.500 13.56 13.875 14.31818

Primary uses Real-time clocks, quartz watches and clocks; allows binary division to 1 Hz signal (2151 Hz) UART clock; allows integer division to common baud rates. (2133252; 16115,200 baud or 96161,200 baud) UART clock; allows integer division to common baud rates up to 38,400 Allows binary division to 100 Hz (32,768100 Hz, or 215100 Hz) PAL M color subcarrier NTSC M color subcarrier. Because these are very common and inexpensive they are used in many other applications, for example DTMF generators PAL N color subcarrier UART clock (21.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates Allows binary division to 1 kHz (2121 kHz) Real-time clocks, divides to 1 Hz signal (2221 Hz) The RDS signal bit rate is at 1.1875 kbit/s. While the frequency of 4.332 MHz is the most commonly used crystal resonator, its multiples (24.332 MHz = 8.664 MHz or 44.332MHz = 17.328 MHz) have been used also. PAL B/D/G/H/I and NTSC M4.43 color subcarrier Used in CDMA systems; divided to 1.2288 MHz baseband frequency as specified by J-STD-008 Digital audio systems - DAT, MiniDisc, sound cards; 12848 kHz (2748 kHz). Also allows integer division to common UART baud rates up to 38,400. Allows binary division to 100 Hz (65,536100 Hz, or 216100 Hz); used also in red boxes NTSC M color subcarrier (23.579545 MHz) UART clock (41.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates PAL B/G/H color subcarrier (24.433618 MHz) Allows integer division to 1024 kHz and binary division to lower frequencies that are whole multiples of 1 Hz. Used in CDMA systems (24.9152 MHz); divided to 1.2288 MHz baseband frequency Used in radio receivers; mixes with 10.7 MHz intermediate frequency (IF) yielding 455 kHz signal, a common second IF for FM radio[6] UART clock (61.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates Used in compact disc digital audio systems and CDROM drives; allows binary division to 44.1 kHz (25644.1 kHz), 22.05 kHz, and 11.025 kHz Used in USB systems as the reference clock for the full-speed PHY rate of 12 Mbit/s, or multiplied up using a PLL to clock high speed PHYs at 480 Mbit/s Digital audio systems - DAT, MiniDisc, sound cards; 25648 kHz (2848 kHz). Also allows integer division to common UART baud rates up to 38400. Master clock for PAL/NTSC DVD players, Digital TV receivers, etc. (13.5 MHz is an exact multiple of the PAL and NTSC line frequencies) Common contactless smartcard frequency (ISO/IEC 14443) Used in some teletext circuits; 26.9375 MHz (clock frequency of PAL B teletext; SECAM uses 6.203125 MHz, NTSC M uses 5.727272 MHz, PAL G uses 6.2031 MHz, and PAL I uses 4.4375 MHz clock) NTSC M color subcarrier (43.579545 MHz). Common seed clock for modern PC 12

14.7456 16.368

16.9344 17.734475 18.432 19.6608 20.000 22.1184 24.576 25.000 25.175 26.000 27.000 29.4912 33.33 40.000 50.000

motherboard clock generator chips, also common on VGA cards. UART clock (81.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates Commonly used for down-conversion and sampling in GPS-receivers. Generates intermediate frequency signal at 4.092 MHz. 16.3676 or 16.367667 MHz are sometimes used to avoid perfect lineup between sampling frequency and GPS spreading code. Used in compact disc digital audio systems and CDROM drives; allows integer division to 44.1 kHz (38444.1 kHz), 22.05 kHz, and 11.025 kHz. Also allows integer division to common UART baud rates. PAL B/G/H color subcarrier (44.433618 MHz) UART clock (101.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates. Also allows integer division to 48 kHz (38448 kHz), 96 kHz, and 192 kHz sample rates used in high-end digital audio. Used in CDMA systems (44.9152); divided to 1.2288 MHz baseband frequency 10 Mbit/s ethernet UART clock (121.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates Digital audio systems - DAT, MiniDisc, AC'97, sound cards; 51248 kHz (2948 kHz) Fast Ethernet MII clock (100 MHz/4-bit nibble) Common Video Graphics Array pixel clock (i.e., 640x350@70 Hz,640x400@70 Hz, 640x480@60 Hz)[7] Commonly used as a reference clock for GSM and UMTS handsets. (26 MHz is exactly 96 times the GSM bit rate) Master clock for PAL/NTSC DVD players, Digital TV receivers etc. (27 MHz is an exact multiple of the PAL and NTSC line frequencies) UART clock (161.8432 MHz); allows integer division to common baud rates common CPU clock common CPU clock, WiFi, OFDM Fast Ethernet (225 MHz)

Circuit notations and abbreviations

On electrical schematic diagrams, crystals are designated with the class letter Y (Y1, Y2, etc.) Oscillators, whether they are crystal oscillators or other, are designated with the class letter G (G1, G2, etc.) (See IEEE Std 315-1975, or ANSI Y32.2-1975.) On occasion, one may see a crystal designated on a schematic with X or XTAL, or a crystal oscillator with XO, but these forms are deprecated. Crystal oscillator types and their abbreviations:

ATCXO analog temperature controlled crystal oscillator CDXO calibrated dual crystal oscillator DTCXO digital temperature compensated crystal oscillator MCXO microcomputer-compensated crystal oscillator OCVCXO oven-controlled voltage-controlled crystal oscillator OCXO oven-controlled crystal oscillator RbXO rubidium crystal oscillators (RbXO), a crystal oscillator (can be a MCXO) synchronized with a built-in rubidium standard which is run only occasionally to save power 13

TCVCXO temperature-compensated voltage-controlled crystal oscillator TCXO temperature-compensated crystal oscillator TSXO temperature-sensing crystal oscillator, an adaptation of the TCXO VCTCXO voltage-controlled temperature-compensated crystal oscillator VCXO voltage-controlled crystal oscillator

Audio Oscillators
Here is a phase-shift audio oscillator with excellent distortion characteristics thanks to "softened" diode limiting provided by the 1N914 and resistor divider and degenerated gain provided by the 68 ohm emitter resistor. For minimum distortion, increase the 68 ohm resistor to a point just below where oscillation stops. A simple buffer may be added for driving lower impedance loads. The output amplitude will be about 5 volts p-p but one of the 1N914's 10k divider resistors may be changed for a different output amplitude. The circuit will work well with a power supply voltage other than 9 volts but the 68 ohm resistor may need adjustment.

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The circuit can be built in the "blobular cluster" style and potted with epoxy mixed with a little model airplane paint. Use quicksetting epoxy and, holding the circuit by the legs, keep rotating the blob near the end of the cure cycle to get an even coat - quite an art form! The finished module looks quite professional, not unlike many dipped caps.

Here is a two-transistor Wien bridge oscillator using an ordinary night-light bulb for stabilization. The output is about 6 volts p-p and can drive fixed loads as low as 2 or 3 thousand ohms without additional buffering. A 10 k amplitude potentiometer with the wiper going to a high input impedance output amplifier would make an excellent load. Excellent distortion is achieved by adjusting the 1 k feedback potentiometer until the output amplitude is about a volt less than the maximum level (with the pot set to the highest resistance). Wait a few seconds between adjustments to give the bulb time to stabilize; the audio signal actually heats the bulb's filament causing the resistance to go up which controls the loop gain. You will see the signal bounce a little as the bulb gains control. This simple version of the popular Wien bridge oscillator uses feedback to hold 15

the junction of the two RC networks (base of first transistor) near zero volts (100 mV p-p) and the ends of the RC networks move in opposite directions like a see-saw. With the resistor values shown, the frequency may be varied from a few Hz to over 60 kHz by selecting a value for C between 1 uF and 47 pF. The frequency will be reasonably close to 1/ (6.28 x RC). R may be varied also for additional range but values too low or high may cause problems. The 7-watt bulb may be replaced by a smaller type with similar resistance (more than 50 ohms) but the long time constant of the larger filament is helpful when generating very low frequencies. The 100 uF output capacitor may be smaller if very low frequencies are not generated. The 22 pF is added for stability and may be eliminated depending on the transistor types and circuit layout. A larger value may be needed in some cases. The output is ground referenced with no DC offset. A load change may require readjustment of the feedback potentiometer. The series RC may be switched if it is desired to have the resistors connected together. A high gain transistor like the MPSA-18 for the first transistor will allow a much larger value for R, up to 1 Megohm. The circuit should draw between 18 and 45 mA, a value determined by the transistor gain and the value of R. Current outside of this range may cause distortion. The 1.2 k emitter resistor may be varied slightly to adjust the current consumption; shoot for 25 to 30 mA. It should be noted that op-amps make great Wien bridge oscillators without significant impedance and bias concerns! There are dozens on the web and in manufacturers' application notes. But sometimes a couple of friendly transistors fit the bill perfectly.

Phase-shift oscillator
A phase-shift oscillator is a simple sine wave electronic oscillator. It contains an inverting amplifier, and a feedback filter which 'shifts' the phase by 180 degrees at the oscillation frequency. The filter must be designed so that at frequencies above and below the oscillation frequency the signal is shifted by either more or less than 180 degrees. This results in constructive superposition for signals at the oscillation frequencies, and destructive superposition for all other frequencies. 16

The most common way of achieving this kind of filter is using three cascaded resistor-capacitor filters, which produce no phase shift at one end of the frequency scale, and a phase shift of 270 degrees at the other end. At the oscillation frequency each filter produces a phase shift of 60 degrees and the whole filter circuit produces a phase shift of 180 degrees.

Op. amp. implementation

A simple example of a phase-shift oscillator One of the simplest implementations for this type of oscillator uses an operational amplifier (opamp), three capacitors and four resistors, as shown in the diagram. The mathematics for calculating the oscillation frequency and oscillation criterion for this circuit are surprisingly complex, due to each R-C stage loading the previous ones. The calculations are greatly simplified by setting all the resistors (except the negative feedback resistor) and all the capacitors to the same values. In the diagram, if R1 = R2 = R3 = R, and C1 = C2 = C3 = C, then:

and the oscillation criterion is:

Without the simplification of all the resistors and capacitors having the same value, the calculations become more complex: 17

Sine wave oscillators

Two configurations are common. One is called a Wien bridge oscillator (pronounced 'vEn and therefore often misspelled as "Wein Bridge"). In this circuit, two RC circuits are used, one with the RC components in series and one with the RC components in parallel. The Wien Bridge is often used in audio signal generators because it can be easily tuned using a two-section variable capacitor or a two section variable potentiometer (which is more easily obtained than a variable capacitor suitable for generation at low frequencies). The archetypical HP 200 audio oscillator is a Wien Bridge oscillator.

The second common design is called a "Twin-T" oscillator as it uses two "T" RC circuits operated in parallel. One circuit is an R-C-R "T" which acts as a low-pass filter. The second circuit is a C-R-C "T" which operates as a high-pass filter. Together, these circuits form a bridge which is tuned at the desired frequency of oscillation. The signal in the C-R-C branch of Twi-T filter is advanced, in the R-C-R - delayed, so they may cancel one another for frequency if x=2; if it is connected as a negative feedback to an amplifier, and x>2, the amplified becomes an oscillator. Another common design is the phase-shift oscillator. If they are to produce an undistorted sine wave, RC oscillators usually require some form of amplitude control. Many common designs simply use an incandescent lamp or a thermistor in the feedback circuit. These oscillators take advantage of the fact that the resistance of the tungsten filament of the lamp increases in proportion to its temperature, a thermistor works in a similar fashion. Operated well below the point at which the filament actually illuminates, increased amplitude of the feedback signal causes increased current flow in the filament thereby increasing the resistance of the filament. The increased resistance of the filament reduces the feedback signal, limiting the oscillator's signal to the linear range. (That is, clipping is prevented.) The HP 200 oscillator introduced this technique. 18

More-sophisticated oscillators measure the output level and use this as feedback to control the gain of the voltage-controlled amplifier within the oscillator. If the amplitude detector has a flat frequency response, then this negative feedback of the amplitude measurement will ensure that the oscillator has a constant output amplitude no matter what frequency it is set to generate.

Non-sine wave oscillators

Many designs exist for RC oscillators that are not required to produce a sine wave. Square waves are the most common. Multivibrators are one approach. The 555 timer IC is another very common approach. Most non-sine wave RC oscillators require only a single RC network. Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RC_oscillator"

Delay line oscillator

A delay line oscillator is a form of electronic oscillator that uses a delay line as its principal timing element. By inverting the output of the delay line and feeding that signal back to the input of the delay line, the circuit is caused to oscillate. Properly designed, the simplest style of the circuit will oscillate with a period of two times the delay period of the delay line. By the use of additional taps from the delay line additional outputs can be derived that are correlated in frequency with the main output but vary in phase. The delay line may be realized with a physical delay line (such as an LC network or a transmission line). A ring oscillator uses a delay line formed from the gate delay of a cascade of logic gates. The timing of a circuit using a physical delay line is usually much more accurate; it is also easier to get such a circuit to oscillate in the desired mode. The delay line oscillator may be allowed to free run or it may be gated for use in asynchronous logic. Since the optical cavity is a delay line, a laser can be regarded as a special case of the delay-line oscillator.

Pierce oscillator
The Pierce oscillator is a type of electronic oscillator circuit particularly well-suited for implementing crystal oscillator circuits. Named for its inventor, George W. Pierce (1872-1956), [1][2] the Pierce oscillator is a derivative of the Colpitts oscillator. Virtually all digital IC clock oscillators are of Pierce type, as the circuit can be implemented using a minimum of components: a single digital inverter, two resistors, two capacitors, and the quartz crystal, which acts as a highly selective filter element. The low manufacturing cost of this circuit, combined with the outstanding frequency stability of the quartz crystal, give it an advantage over other designs in many consumer electronics applications.

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Operation

Simple Pierce oscillator

Biasing resistor
R1 acts as a feedback resistor, biasing the inverter in its linear region of operation and effectively causing it to function as a high gain inverting amplifier. To see this, assume the inverter is ideal, with infinite input impedance and zero output impedance; this resistor forces the input and output voltages to be equal. Hence the inverter will neither be fully on nor off, but in the transition region where it has gain.

Resonator
The crystal in combination with C1 and C2 forms a pi network band-pass filter, which provides a 180 degree phase shift and a voltage gain from the output to input at approximately the resonant frequency of the crystal. To understand the operation of this, it can be noted that at the frequency of oscillation, the crystal appears inductive; thus it can be considered a large inductor with a high Q. The combination of the 180 degree phase shift (i.e. inverting gain) from the pi network and the negative gain from the inverter results in a positive loop gain (positive feedback), making the bias point set by R1 unstable and leading to oscillation.

Isolation resistor
A second resistor could be used between the output of the inverter and the crystal to isolate the inverter from the crystal network. This would also add additional phase shift to C1.[3]

Load capacitance
The total capacitance seen from the crystal looking into the rest of the circuit is called the "load capacitance". When a manufacturer makes a "parallel" crystal, a technician uses a Pierce oscillator with a particular load capacitance (often 18 or 20 pF) while trimming the crystal to oscillate at exactly the frequency written on its package. 20

To get the same frequency performance, one must then make sure that the capacitances in the circuit match this value specified in the crystal's data sheet. Load capacitance CL can be calculated from the series combination of C1 and C2, taking into account Ci and Co, the input and output capacitance of the inverter, and Cs, the stray capacitances from the oscillator, PCB layout, and crystal case (typically 3-9 pF):[4][5][6] [7]

When a manufacturer makes a "series" crystal, a technician uses a different tuning procedure. When such a crystal is used in a Pierce oscillator, the Pierce oscillator (as always) drives the crystal at nearly its parallel resonance frequency. But that frequency is few kilohertz higher than the series resonant frequency printed on the package of a "series" crystal. Increasing the "load capacitance" slightly decreases the frequency generated by a Pierce oscillator, but never enough to reduce it all the way down to the series resonant frequency.

Relaxation oscillator
A relaxation oscillator is an oscillator in which a capacitor is charged gradually and then discharged rapidly. It is usually implemented with a resistor or current source, a capacitor, and a "threshold" device such as a neon lamp, thyratron, diac, unijunction transistor, or Gunn diode. For simplification below, a single "threshold" device will be replaced by a set of comparators and a SR Latch. The capacitor is charged through the resistor, causing the voltage across the capacitor to approach the charging voltage on an exponential curve. In parallel with the capacitor is the threshold device. Such devices don't conduct at all until the voltage across them reaches some threshold (trigger) voltage. They then conduct heavily, quickly discharging the capacitor. When the voltage across the capacitor drops to some lower threshold voltage, the device stops conducting and the capacitor can begin charging again, repeating the cycle. If the threshold element is a neon lamp, the circuit also provides a flash of light with each discharge of the capacitor. When a (neon) cathode glow lamp or thyratron are used as the trigger devices a second resistor with a value of a few tens to hundreds ohms is often placed in series with the gas trigger device to limit the current from the discharging capacitor and prevent the electrodes of the lamp rapidly sputtering away or the cathode coating of the thyratron being damaged by the repeated pulses of heavy current. The electrical output of a relaxation oscillator is usually a sawtooth wave. If only a small portion of the exponential ramp is used (that is, if the triggering voltage of the threshold device is much lower than the charging voltage source), the ramp will approximate a linear ramp but if a truly linear sawtooth is required, then the charging resistor should be replaced by some sort of constant current source. Trigger devices with a third control connection, such as the thyratron or unijunction transistor allow the timing of the discharge of the capacitor to be synchronized with a control pulse. Thus the sawtooth output can be synchronized to signals produced by other circuit elements as it is often used as a scan waveform for a display, such as a cathode ray tube. 21

Op AmpBased Relaxation Oscillator

A comparator-based hysteretic oscillator. One example of a relaxation oscillator is a hysteretic oscillator, named this way because of the hysteresis created by the positive feedback loop implemented with the comparator (or an op amp). A circuit that implements this form of hysteretic switching is known as a Schmitt trigger. Alone, the trigger is a bistable multivibrator. However, the slow negative feedback added to the trigger by the RC circuit causes the circuit to oscillate automatically. That is, the addition of the RC circuit turns the hysteretic bistable multivibrator into an astable multivibrator.

General Concept
The system is in unstable equilibrium if both the inputs and outputs of the op amp are at zero volts. The moment any sort of noise, be it thermal or electromagnetic noise brings the output of the op amp above zero (the case of the op amp output going below zero is also possible, and a similar argument to what follows applies), the positive feedback in the op amp results in the output of the op amp saturating at the positive rail. In other words, because the output of the op amp is now positive, the non-inverting input to the op amp is also positive, and continues to increase as the output increases, due to the voltage divider. After a short time, the output of the op amp is the positive voltage rail, VDD.

Series RC Circuit The inverting input and the output of the op amp are linked by a series RC circuit. Because of this, the inverting input of the op amp asymptotically approaches the op amp output voltage with a time constant RC. At the point where voltage at the inverting input is greater than the noninverting input, the output of the op amp falls quickly due to positive feedback. This is because the non-inverting input is less than the inverting input, and as the output continues to decrease, the difference between the inputs gets more and more negative. Again, the inverting input approaches the op amp's output voltage asymptotically, and the cycle repeats itself once the non-inverting input is greater than the inverting input, hence the system oscillates. 22

Example: Differential Equation Analysis of Op-Amp based Relaxation Oscillator

Transient analysis of an opamp based relaxation oscillator. is set by across a resistive voltage divider:

is obtained using Ohm's law and the capacitor differential equation:

Rearranging the

differential equation into standard form results in the following:

Notice there are two solutions to the differential equation, the driven or particular solution and the homogeneous solution. Solving for the driven solution, observe that for this particular form, the solution is a constant. In other words, where A is a constant and .

Using the Laplace transform to solve the homogeneous equation

results in

is the sum of the particular and homogeneous solution.

Solving for B requires evaluation of the initial conditions. At time 0, Vout Substituting into our previous equation,

= Vdd and

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Frequency of Oscillation Note that half of the period (T) is the same as the first time that Vout switches. This occurs when .

This analysis is only partially correct. The derived frequency of oscillation is based on the time period of the initial charge, which is not the same as subsequent charges/discharges and therefore incorrect. This can be visually verified by examining the figure of simulation results that accompanies this article. Notice the initial charge time is shorter than all subsequent periods, implying that the derived frequency (based on this initial time period) would be higher than its true frequency of operation. The initial conditions were that V0 = 0. This is true when the system is at rest and sufficient for the initial charge. But after the first and every subsequent transition (when Vt = Vdd/2 or when Vt = Vss/2) this initial condition is no longer true. For subsequent transitions in which the capacitor is charging the initial condition would be that V0 = Vss/2 and not V0 = 0. This effectively changes the value of B in the derivation above: At time 0, Vout = Vdd and V_ = Vss/2. Vss/2 = Vdd + B. B = Vss/2 - Vdd. (B does not equal -Vdd). So the charging equation becomes (for all charging periods except the initial charge):

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T = (2RC)[ln(Vss 2Vdd) ln(Vdd)]

Practical examples of the use of the relaxation oscillator

This type of circuit was used as the time base in early oscilloscopes and television receivers. Variants of this circuit find use in stroboscopes used in machine shops and nightclubs. Electronic camera flashes are a monostable version of this circuit, generating one cycle of the sawtooth, the rising edge as the flash capacitor is charged and the rapid falling edge as the capacitor is discharged and the flash is produced upon receiving the firing signal from the shutter button. Use as a timebase in oscilloscopes was discontinued when the much more linear Miller Integrator timebase circuit using "hard" valves, (vacuum tubes) as a constant current source, was developed.

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