Programmable Drive Strength
The SiT8008 includes a programmable drive strength
feature to provide a simple, flexible tool to optimize the
clock rise/fall time for specific applications. Benefits from
the programmable drive strength feature are:
◼ Improves system radiated electromagnetic interference
(EMI) by slowing down the clock rise/fall time.
◼ Improves the downstream clock receiver’s (RX) jitter by
decreasing (speeding up) the clock rise/fall time.
◼ Ability to drive large capacitive loads while maintaining
full swing with sharp edge rates.
For more detailed information about rise/fall time control and
drive strength selection, see the SiTime Application Notes
section.
EMI Reduction by Slowing Rise/Fall Time
Figure 16 shows the harmonic power reduction as the
rise/fall times are increased (slowed down). The rise/fall
times are expressed as a ratio of the clock period. For the
ratio of 0.05, the signal is very close to a square wave. For
the ratio of 0.45, the rise/fall times are very close to near-
triangular waveform. These results, for example, show that
the 11th clock harmonic can be reduced by 35 dB if the
rise/fall edge is increased from 5% of the period to 45% of
the period.
Jitter Reduction with Faster Rise/Fall Time
Power supply noise can be a source of jitter for the
downstream chipset. One way to reduce this jitter is to
speed up the rise/fall time of the input clock. Some chipsets
may also require faster rise/fall time in order to reduce their
sensitivity to this type of jitter. Refer to the Rise/Fall Time
Tables (Table 7 to Table 11) to determine the proper drive
strength.
High Output Load Capability
The rise/fall time of the input clock varies as a function of
the actual capacitive load the clock drives. At any given
drive strength, the rise/fall time becomes slower as the
output load increases. As an example, for a 3.3 V SiT8008
device with default drive strength setting, the typical rise/fall
time is 1 ns for 15 pF output load. The typical rise/fall time slows
down to 2.6 ns when the output load increases to 45 pF. One
can choose to speed up the rise/fall time to 1.83 ns by then
increasing the drive strength setting on the SiT8008.
The SiT8008 can support up to 60 pF or higher in
maximum capacitive loads with drive strength settings.
Refer to the Rise/Fall Time Tables (Table 7 to 11) to
determine the proper drive strength for the desired
combination of output load vs. rise/fall time.
SiT8008 Drive Strength Selection
Tables 7 through 11 define the rise/fall time for a given
capacitive load and supply voltage.
1. Select the table that matches the SiT8008 nominal
supply voltage (1.8 V, 2.5 V, 2.8 V, 3.0 V, 3.3 V)
2. Select the capacitive load column that matches the
application requirement (5 pF to 60 pF)
3. Under the capacitive load column, select the
desired rise/fall times.
4. The left-most column represents the part number
code for the corresponding drive strength.
5. Add the drive strength code to the part number for
ordering purposes.
Calculating Maximum Frequency
Any given rise/fall time in Table 7 through 11 dictates the
maximum frequency under which the oscillator can operate
with guaranteed full output swing over the entire operating
temperature range. This max frequency can be calculated as
the following: