Corning Frequency ControI Inc.

100 Watts Street

Mount Holly Springs PA 17065
t 717 486 3411
f 717 486 5920
www.corning.com
Basic Oscillators 101
Specification Requirements and Definitions
Angela M. Slocum
created August 3, 1995
updated February 11, 2000
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 2
The Bare Essentials Needed to Specify an Oscillator
When Iirst being asked to speciIy an oscillator, it is easy to be unsure or conIused as to
what is needed. The list below is the minimal amount oI inIormation needed to start:
Frequency
Stability over Temperature
Temperature Range
Yearly Aging
Output preIerred
Package preIerred
The next page is a sheet that is useIul as a guideline Ior the additional inIormation that may
be required beyond the bare essentials. The pages aIter the guideline have deIinitions Ior
some oI the terms Iound on the oscillator speciIication Iorm.
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 3
Oscillator Specification Form
Corning Frequency Control Inc. Worldwide Data Book 2001 v1.0.2001-03-15
Corning Frequency Control Inc. 100 Watts Street Mt. Holly Springs, PA 17065 Tel 1-717-486-3411 Fax 1-717-486-5920 www.corningfrequency.com
Tele Quarz GmbH & Co. KG Landstrasse D-74924 Neckarbischofsheim, Germany Tel +49-7268-801-0 Fax +49-07268-801-281 www.telequarz.de
1 / 1
From:________________________________
Cust. Name: Co.:
Phone: Fax:
Oscillator Type
Clock, TCXO, OCXO, VCXO, Other:
Similar to:
Frequency Stability
Temperature:
Aging:
Load Variation:
Supply Variation:
Initial Set Tolerance @ 25 C:
Overall:
Output
Frequency:
Squarewave: TTL, CMOS, ACMOS,
CMOS, ECL
Sinewave:
Harmonics (Sub):
Spurious:
Other:
Voltage - Current - Power
Oscillator: V @ mA
Oven: V @ mA (steady state)
mA (turn-on)
Warm-up time: minutes
Mechanical Trim or EFC
Trim Range:
Voltage Control:
Reference Voltage:
Linearity:
Other:
Phase Noise
Allan Variance
Environmental
Temperature Range:
Shock:
Vibration:
Acceleration:
Other:
MIL-PRF-55310: yes or no
Application and Quantity
Commercial Military Space
Parts/Reliability Requirements
Mechanical
Size:
Mounting Methods:
Connectors (Power/RF):
Other Requirements
Enable/Disable: yes or no
BIT: yes or no
Form 51-034
11-22-00
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 4
Definitions
1.0 Oscillator Types
1.1 Clock
A clock is an uncompensated crystal oscillator. Stability is usually rather
loose as shown in Table 1. The construction oI OFC's clocks is typically
hybrid design versus discrete design. Hybrid design combines open ICs
(dies), uncanned crystals (blanks), substrates, wire bonds, etc., into a
Iunctioning unit. Discrete design combines ICs, canned crystals, printed
circuit boards (PCB), etc., into a Iunctioning unit.
1.2 TCXO
A Temperature Compensated Crystal Oscillator (TCXO) typically
contains a temperature compensation network to sense the ambient
temperature and pull the crystal Irequency to prevent the Irequency driIt
over the temperature range. Figure 1 shows an example oI this.
-10
-8
-6
-4
-2
0
2
4
6
8
10
-20 0 25 50 70
Temperature
S
t
a
b
i
l
i
t
y
Compensat ing Curcuit
BeIore Temperat ure
Compensat ion
Final Result
Figure 1 Example oI TCXO Compensation
Table 1 shows the best perIormance oI Irequency over temperature oI a
TCXO.
1.3 OCXO
An Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO) usually contains an oven
block where the temperature sensor, heating element, oven circuitry, and
insulation Iunction to maintain a stable temperature. By maintaining the
temperature oI the crystal, great improvements in oscillator perIormance
are realized over other Iorms oI crystal compensation. OCXOs can use
either AT-, SC-, or IT- cut crystals depending on temperature range and
aging perIormance. An enhanced version oI an OCXO is the Double
Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator (DOCXO) which oIIers better
Irequency stability over temperature (see Table 1) by having an oven
within an oven.
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 5
Type
Clock TCXO OCXO DOCXO
Temperature Range
0 C to 70 C + 10 ppm + 0.5 ppm +0.003 ppm (+ 3 ppb) 0.0002 ppm (0.2 ppb)
-20 C to 70 C + 25 ppm + 0.5 ppm +0.003 ppm (+ 3 ppb) 0.0004 ppm (0.4 ppb)
-40 C to 85 C + 30 ppm + 1 ppm +0.02 ppm (+ 20 ppb) N/A
-55 C to 125 C + 50 ppm N/A N/A N/A
Note: These numbers are dependent on size, Irequency, cut oI crystal.
Table 1 Best Stability Each Oscillator Type Can Hold
1.4 VCXO and VCO
A Voltage Controlled Crystal Oscillator (JCXO) is an uncompensated
clock which is pullable. Pullable means the nominal Irequency is
adjustable. A Voltage Controlled Oscillator (JCO) is similar to a
VCXO except it contains no crystal. VCOs are not in our product
oIIering.
2.0 Frequency Stability
2.1 Units
ppm: parts per million (1 ppm 1 x 10
-6
0.0001)
example: 1 ppm equals 1 million Hertz (MHz) changing 1 Hertz
(Hz)
ppb: parts per billion (1 ppb 1 x 10
-9
)
example: 1 ppb equals 1 million Hertz (MHz) changing 0.001
Hertz (Hz)
: the percent change in Irequency
Table 2 shows the relationship between units.
10
X
ppm
10
-3
1000 0.1
10
-4
100 0.01
10
-5
10 0.001
10
-6
1 0.0001
10
-7
0.1 (100 ppb) 0.00001
10
-8
0.01 (10 ppb) 0.000001
10
-9
0.001 (1 ppb) 0.0000001
10
-10
0.0001 (0.1 ppb) 0.00000001
Note on exponents: add 1 when moving leIt, subtract 1 when moving right
Table 2 Stability Chart
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 6
2.2 Stability Calculation
(I
measured
- I
nominal
) / I
nominal
diIIerence
2.3 Temperature stability
It is how the unit changes Irequency over the temperature range.
2.4 Initial Set Tolerance
Initial Set Tolerance, a.k.a. Initial Accuracy, is where the Irequency is set
close to the nominal Irequency at room temperature. The closeness can
diIIer Irom +100 ppm to +0.25 ppm.
2.4 Aging
Aging is the Irequency shiIt oI the crystal over a certain time period. Table
3 shows typically Iirst year aging Ior 10 MHz clocks, TCXOs, and
OCXOs.
Clock TCXO OCXO
+ 3 ppm + 1 ppm + 0.5 ppm (AT-cut), + 0.1 ppm (SC-cut)
Table 3 Aging per Year PerIormance
2.5 Load variation
Load variation is the Irequency shiIt with change in load.
2.6 Supply variation
It is the Irequency shiIt with change in supply.
3.0 Output
3.1 Frequency
Frequencv is how Iast the output signal is changing. Hertz (Hz) is the
measurement Ior Irequency. One Hertz corresponds to one complete cycle
oI a waveIorm occurring in one second. The waveIorm is periodic which
means it repeats the same pattern indeIinitely. Examples oI waveIorms are
squarewave, sinewave, and triangle. The output oI oscillators at OFC is
either squarewave or sinewave.
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 7
3.2 Squarewave
Figure 2 is a squarewave. Following Figure 2 are miscellaneous terms
used in conjunction with squarewave outputs.
Figure 2 Squarewave WaveIorm
fan-out (loads) - the number oI logic chips the IC can drive
symmetry or duty cycle - the shape oI the waveIorm. The shape is made
up oI the logic "1" and logic "0" cycle times.
rise time (t
r
) - the time it takes Ior the signal to go Irom logic "0" to logic
"1"
fall time (t
f
) - the time it takes Ior the signal to go Irom logic "1" to logic
"0"
tri-state or enable - an input that allows the output to be turned oII or
disabled (a.k.a. high impedance state)
TTL: (T
2
L): Transistor - Transistor Logic
logic levels: 1: 2.4 V min.
0: 0.4 V max.
duty cycle: measured at 1.4 V
typical Ian-out: 10 loads
types oI TTL: S, LS, FAST, AS
CMOS: Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
logic levels: 1: 90 oI Input Voltage
0: 10 oI Input Voltage
duty cycle: measured at 50 oI Input Voltage
typical Ian-out: 10 loads
types oI CMOS: CMOS, ACMOS, HCMOS
ECL: Emitter Coupled Logic
logic levels: 1: -0.9 V
0: -1.75 V
types oI ECL: 10k ECL, 100k ECL, MECL, Eclips
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 8
3.3 Sinewave
Figure 3 shows a sinewave signal. Following Figure 3 are miscellaneous
terms used in conjunction with sinewave.
Figure 3 Sinewave WaveIorm
V
P
: peak voltage
V
P-P
: peak to peak voltage
V
rms
: root mean square voltage 0.707 * V
P
dB: decibel - it is a ratio oI one level compared to a certain reIerence level
dBm: a ratio oI output voltage and load (typically 50 ohm) compared to 1
mW. The Iormula Ior converting V
rms
to dBm is
dBm 10 log |(V
rms
)
2
/load|/1.0 x 10
-3
}.
Table 4 shows some typical Voltage to Power conversions.
Voltage Voltage Power load
V
rms
V
p-p
dBm ohm
0.316 0.894 3 50
0.398 1.13 5 50
0.707 2.0 10 50
0.999 2.83 13 50
0.354 1.0 9.0 1k
Table 4 Voltage to Power conversions
3.4 Miscellaneous
Harmonics: multiples oI the main Irequency (sinewave only typically)
For example, the Iundamental (main) Irequency is 10 MHz, the
second harmonic is 20 MHz, the third harmonic is 30 MHz
Spurious: noise not related to the multiples oI the main Irequency
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 9
4.0 Voltage - Current - Power
4.1 Units
Power (P): W (watts), mW (milli Watt 0.001 W)
Current (I): A (amps), mA (milliamps 0.001 A)
Voltage (V): V (volts)
4.2 Formulas
P I * V
V I * R
4.3 Warm-up and Steady State
Warm-up, a.k.a. stabilization, is the amount oI time Ior the crystal to come
back close to its nominal Irequency. It is typically on OCXO specs only.
TCXOs occasionally have a warm-up or stabilization spec.
Steady State is when the oven in the oscillator has reached its operating
temperature.
4.4 Miscellaneous
Power consumption Ior OCXOs is typically around 5 W at warm-up and
1.5 W at steady state depending on size.
5.0 Mechanical trim or EFC
5.1 Mechanical Trim
Mechanical trim allows the Irequency to be adjusted via an internal
potentiometer (pot). The pot is accessed through a sealed or unsealed hole.
5.2 EFC
EFC (electrical Irequency control) requires an external circuit to adjust the
Irequency. The external circuit usually consists oI a pot or DAC. The
power Ior this circuit can be applied via an external voltage source
supplied by the customer or an internal reIerence voltage supplied by OFC.
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 10
5.3 Linearity
Linearity is the change Irom a straight path.
Figure 5 Linearity
5.4 Slope
Slope is the direction the Irequency changes with respect to the voltage.
Positive means the Irequency is increasing with increasing voltage.
Negative means that the Irequency is increasing with decreasing voltage.
Figure 6 Slope
6.0 Phase Noise
Phase noise is a small Iraction oI undesirable noise near the output Irequency
caused by Iluctuations in the signal. Phase noise is dependent mostly on the crystal
with the circuitry making up the unit playing a small role. The measurement is
commonly in the 1 Hz bandwidth. The description oI phase noise is "at x Hz oIIset
it is v dBc/Hz". Table 5 lists some typical OCXO and TCXO phase noise numbers.
oIIset TCXO OCXO
1 Hz -65 dBc/Hz -80 dBc/Hz
10 Hz -95 dBc/Hz -110 dBc/Hz
100 Hz -125 dBc/Hz -135 dBc/Hz
1 kHz -140 dBc/Hz -145 dBc/Hz
10 kHz -145 dBc/Hz -150 dBc/Hz
Table 5 Typical phase noise 10 MHz
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 11
Some situations that make phase noise worse are vibration and Irequency
multiplication.
Vibration - sinusoidal or random - causes spurious sidebands at the output. These
sidebands oIIset the desired output Irequency by the Irequency oI the vibration.
These sidebands are dependent on the Irequency and magnitude oI the vibration,
the output Irequency oI the oscillator, the acceleration sensitivity oI the crystal, and
the mechanical perIormance oI the crystal and oscillator.
When Irequency multiplication is used to multiply the crystal Irequency to the
required output Irequency, the phase noise degrades by
20 log (multiplication Iactor)
which equates to about 6 db less Ior a multiplication Iactor oI 2, about 10 dB less
Ior a multiplication Iactor oI 3, and about 20 dB Ior a multiplication Iactor oI 10.
7.0 Allan Variance
Allan Variance, a.k.a. short term stability, is similar to phase noise except based in
the time domain instead oI the Irequency domain like phase noise. Typical
numbers Ior OCXOs are in Table 6.
seconds
0.01 1 x 10
-10
0.1 5 x 10
-11
1 1 x 10
-11
Table 6 Allan Variance Ior a 10 MHz OCXO
8.0 Environmental
8.1 Temperature
Military: -55 C to 125 C
Industrial: -40 C to 85 C
Commercial: 0 C to 70 C
Below are the Iormulas Ior converting:
F 32 (C * 1.8)
C (F - 32)/1.8
8.2 Shock
Shock is a sudden powerIul blow. A typical shock number Ior TCXOs is
100g.
Corning Frequency Control nc. Basic Oscillators 101 Page 12
8.3 Vibration
Vibration is a rapid motion back and Iorth. There are two types oI
vibration Ior oscillators. They are sine vibrations and random vibrations.
Sine vibrations concentrate all the energy at a single Irequency. The units
are g PEAK. Random vibration is distributed over the entire spectrum.
The units are g
2
/Hz.
For commercial units, vibration numbers should be limited to a 0.06" peak
to peak amplitude change in a Irequency range oI 10 Hz to 55 Hz Ior
OCXOs. For TCXOs, typical numbers are 5 to 10 g Ior sine vibration up
to 500 Hz.
8.4 Acceleration
Acceleration is an increase in speed. Acceleration sensitivity, also known
as g-sensitivity, is the Irequency shiIt caused by subjecting the crystal to a
constant acceleration. Typical acceleration numbers are summarized in
Table 7.
commercial TCXOs commercial OCXOs Hi-Rel OCXOs
5 x 10
-9
/g 3.5 x 10
-9
/g 2 x 10
-9
/g
Table 7 Typical g-sensitivity numbers