MSP430

Ultra-Low Power | High Integration | Easy-to-Use

How To Series: Clock System

2011

Agenda

Purpose
Provide a brief but informative technical overview in HOW-TO use
the MSP430 clock system

Objectives
Clock system basics & ULP
Clocking & MSP430 generations
Design considerations

Why is the clock system

important?
MSP430 Ultra-Low
Power

Ultra-Low Power Active Mode

Careabouts:

CPU Clock

Up to 7 Low Power Modes (LPMx)

Instant Wakeup
Autonomous peripheral operation in
low power modes

The clock system is

fundamental to enabling
the ULP feature set of the
MSP430

Peripheral Clock

High frequency
Low power
Stable & Flexible
Fast wake-up
High frequency
Low power
Stable & Flexible
Fast wake-up
Independent from CPU

Standby Clock

Ultra-low power
Low frequency
Accurate (RTC)
Reliable (WDT)

MSP430 Clock System Basics

All ULP MSP430 devices

have a fundamental
clocking architecture

Always-on

On demand

On-chip, high frequency,

instant-on oscillator (DCO)
ULP, low frequency, 32.768kHz
crystal oscillator (LFXT1)

~250uA

~1uA

Enables ULP embedded

operation
DCO for fast, low power active CPU
processing
LFXT1 Ultra-low power standby
clock for timer wakeup
DCO Instant-on ablity to service
interrupts

Breaking down the terminology

LFXT1

VLO

This is the ULP low frequency crystal

oscillator in every MSP430 device
Typical usage is with a 32.768kHz watch
crystal for RTC
In some devices (2xx, 5xx, 6xx) it is also
possible to source a digital clock directly to
the LFXT1 input
Most devices also support a high frequency
mode (see XT1) that can interface with
MHz-range crystals & resonator

Extremely ULP on-chip oscillator, fixed to

~10kHz
Useful for standby clocking where power is
more critical than accuracy

REFO

On-chip ULP 32.768kHz oscillator for

crystal-less operation at more accurate
frequencies that via the VLO

DCO

FLL

Feature in some devices (4xx, 5xx, 6xx) that will

automatically adjust the DCO frequency based
on a provided reference clock

MODOSC

Digitally Controlled Oscillator built into every

MSP430 device
Capable of 100s kHz to 10s MHz & is user
programmable

5MHz on-chip oscillator for automatic use with

select peripherals

XT1 & XT2

Oscillator circuit for crystals & resonators

(HF)XT1 on almost all MSP430s (except the
F20xx and some G2xx devices
XT2 present only on larger pin count MSP430s
(64+)
High frequency support only

Clocking & MSP430 generations

Clock/
Feature

Frequency
Range

Relative
Precision

Application/Devices Supported
High-Frequency

DCO
+ROSC

100kHz to
25MHz+

+FLL

Low
(2xx:
Medium)

ALL MSP430s: High frequency source for CPU & peripherals

2xx only: Integrates a high stability DCO over temp & Vcc w/
calibrated constants stored in flash for common freqs

Better

1xx, some 2xx: Can help stabilize DCO drift over temperature
using external precision resistor

Best

4xx,5xx,6xx: Auto-tunes DCO based on reference clock such

as 32kHz xtal

HFXT1/
XT2

100s kHz
to 10s MHz

High

Most MSP430s: use when high accuracy/frequency is

required. Higher current than DCO.
Typically, smaller devices do not support XT2
20xx & some G2xx devices do not support HF mode at all

MODOSC

5MHz

Medium

5xx, 6xx: Integrate osc for auto-on use with FLASH, ADC &
other modules
Low-Frequency

LFXT1

32kHz

High

ALL MSP430s: standard use in LPM3/3.5 & RTC applications

VLO

~10kHz

Low

2xx, 5xx, 6xx: Integrated low freq osc consuming lowest

current of any clock option

REFO

32kHz

Medium/
High

5xx, 6xx: Integrated 32kHz osc for crystal-less applications

providing reasonable accuracy

Design considerations

MSP430 has 3 clock trees

Design for robust 32kHz crystal operation if needed

As with any ULP oscillator, proper crystal selection, loading & PCB layout are key factors in
achieving a reliable 32KHz XTAL design
Check oscillation allowance BEFORE production to address any weakness

Know the differences in device family features

ACLK: typical use as low frequency, low power LPMx peripheral clock
MCLK: active CPU clock
SMCLK: high or low frequency peripheral clock

Basics are the same, however a lot of variation in feature set exists
Understanding what is possible is key to realizing ULP operation

Understand device/family-specific behavior:

Active WDT: sourced from the DCO at power up/reset: handle the WDT first in your software!
Clock failsafe: crystal fault detection means safe & reliable operation but may result in incorrect
frequencies. Take care to configure clocks and properly handle osc fault conditions.
Clock requests: some clocks may or may not automatically remain active when entering LPMx
modes, resulting in unexpected halting of peripherals or higher than expected LPMx current
consumption

References

MSP430F5xx and MSP430F6xx Core Libraries

MSP430 32-kHz Crystal Oscillators

Provides functions that implement the most common operations using the PMM, UCS, PMAP and Flash modules,
such as changing the core voltage to operate at higher frequencies, crystal/clock initialization, mapping port I/O,
and write/erase flash operations.

Describes selection of the right crystal, correct load circuit, and proper board layout key to stable crystal oscillator
performance. Information regarding recommended PCB desing and possible oscillator tests to ensure stable oscillator
operation in mass production are included.

MSP430 LFXT1 Oscillator Accuracy

Details the factors that influence achievable accuracy of the low frequency oscillator, specifically for real-time clock
(RTC) applications in 1xx & 4xx devices.

Microcrystal Recommendations for 32.768kHz crystals

Epson Toyocom Recommendations for 32.768kHz crystals

Your specific MSP430 devices datasheet & Family Users

Guide

Thank
you!