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Inside Frequency Control

4 Key Questions to Ask to Find the Perfect Crystal Oscillator for Your Design

Posted by Rob Rutkowski on Dec 19, 2023 9:00:00 AM

The harsh truth is, selecting the wrong quartz crystal oscillator can quickly kill any design. With the wide variety of options and specs available on the market today, selecting the perfect crystal oscillator for your design can be a difficult and time-consuming task.

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Topics: crystal oscillators

OCXO 101: Anatomy of an Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Dec 12, 2023 9:00:00 AM

The oven controlled crystal oscillator (OCXO) is near the top of the food chain when it comes to quartz-based frequency control devices, superseded only by the mighty double oven crystal oscillator (DOCXO).

In this blog, we'll review the basics of how an OCXO works, the terms you need to know, how to determine the turning point, and the differences between AT and SC crystal cuts. 

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Topics: engineering, crystal oscillators, Clocks & Crystals

Assured PNT: Going Beyond GPS Timing

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Nov 30, 2023 9:00:00 AM

While GPS technology plays an important role in modern navigation, it's not perfect. Although GPS might perform well enough consumer usage, signal jamming or other disruptions present serious threats to military operations. 

Enter assured positioning, navigation, and timing (A-PNT), new technology that enhances traditional GPS timing. Assured PNT uses additional sources to augment GPS and prevent vulnerabilities. Its goal is to ensure that accurate positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) is always available.

In this blog, we'll review GPS, its flaws, and other PNT systems (like the GNSS) and give you an overview of how assured PNT technology uses other systems to improve effectiveness. 

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Topics: GPS & GNSS, Defense & PNT

Your Guide to Electronic Frequency Control Methods for Crystal Oscillators

Posted by Rob Rutkowski on Nov 21, 2023 9:00:00 AM

What's better than a crystal oscillator? A crystal oscillator combined with electronic frequency control (EFC)!

Of course, determining if EFC would be a good addition to your crystal oscillator circuit design (and if so, which method is best for you) comes down to your specific application and its requirements.

There are four options to choose from when selecting an electronic frequency control method for your crystal oscillator:

  1. Pulse width modulation (PWM) & low-pass filter (LPF)
  2. Reference RF signal & phase locked loop (PLL)
  3. Voltage divide
  4. Digital-to-analog converter (DAC)

In this post,  we'll take a closer look at each option and their best applications.

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Topics: crystal oscillators, RF Technology

Crystal Cut Types: AT vs. SC Cut Performance Comparison

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Nov 7, 2023 9:00:00 AM

Inside every quartz oscillator is something called a crystal blank. The crystal blank is the resonating element of the oscillator that, when subjected to a voltage potential, will begin to vibrate and oscillate at its fundamental frequency.

The way the crystal blank is manufactured can have a significant impact on the oscillator's performance. In this blog, we'll be discussing how the orientation of the quartz when the crystal blank is cut can affect how your oscillator performs.

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Topics: crystal oscillators, Clocks & Crystals

Which Crystal Oscillator Output Signal Is Best for Your Application?

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Oct 27, 2023 9:00:00 AM

Why is it important to choose the right crystal oscillator output signal?

The output signal types of crystal oscillators can provide different benefits and drawbacks depending on what you're trying to accomplish with your product. With that said, it's important to understand signal types to avoid as much attenuating and distorting of your clock signal as possible. You'll also want to be sure you're receiving more benefits than drawbacks from the signal to meet your specific design needs.

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Topics: crystal oscillators

Phase Noise Measurement: How to Measure Phase Noise with a Crystal Oscillator

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Oct 20, 2023 9:00:00 AM

In a perfect world, a crystal oscillator would generate a signal that remains steady, consistent, and clear with no deviations, for as long as that signal needs to be transmitted. 

But in the real world, no crystal oscillator produces a 100% perfect signal. Even if the signal is very strong and clear, there will still be tiny, random fluctuations in its waveform. This phenomenon can be represented visually in the frequency domain as sidebands on either side of the carrier. These unwanted fluctuations are referred to as phase noise.

In the blog, we'll explain why you need to measure phase noise, what the methods are for measuring it, and 

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Topics: crystal oscillators

AT vs. SC-Cut Quartz Crystals: Is EFC Over-Specification Costing You?

Posted by Rob Rutkowski on Oct 12, 2023 9:00:00 AM

What if we told you that specifying more electronic frequency control (EFC) than you need could actually be hurting your company's wallet? Well, it very well may be!

Paying attention to whether your supplier is using AT-cut or SC-cut crystals will help you save money in the long run when it comes to oscillators. In this article, we'll review the difference between these two types of cuts and the impacts of EFC pull. 

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Topics: crystal oscillators, Clocks & Crystals, RF Technology

How to Prevent Frequency Perturbations in Crystal Oscillators

Posted by Rob Rutkowski on Sep 19, 2023 9:00:00 AM

Frequency perturbations, also referred to as activity dips, can be difficult to spot in crystal oscillators. But a single perturbation can cause major problems in an application’s signal, including within GPS or missile systems.

Imagine launching a missile and then losing control of its navigation. Or getting a very inaccurate GPS velocity reading of an aircraft. These (and many other problems) can be caused by a failure to spot activity dips in crystals.

In this article, we'll help you  understand what frequency perturbations are and how to prevent them from occurring in crystal oscillators.

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Topics: crystal oscillators

Crystal Oscillator Manufacturers & RF Technology Best Practices

Posted by Bliley Technologies on Sep 14, 2023 9:00:00 AM

These are exciting times to be working in any field of engineering, but especially in the radio frequency (RF) industry. The modern economy simply cannot function without RF technology, and as we transition into a world of ever-faster mobile service, civilian and military space-based systems, and the Internet of Things (IoT), we’ll  rely increasingly on microwave, low-frequency engineering.

With all the rapid change in the industry and advancements in RF tech, it’s going to be more important than ever to find a crystal oscillator manufacturer that follows the best practices that have guided RF engineers in the past and will continue to in the future.

In this article, we'll provide a basic overview of the RF technology best practices your crystal oscillator manufacturer should be following.

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Topics: RF Technology, general

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