All-in-one chip replaces clocks, oscillators, buffers, and complete clock trees

By Gina Roos, editor-in-chief

Silicon Labs  has expanded its Si5332 any-frequency clock portfolio with new devices that combine the clock IC and a quartz crystal reference in the same package, which simplifies board layout and design. The chip reduces the risk of interoperability issues compared to other solutions that source the parts separately from different suppliers, said the company. Silicon Labs guarantees reliable startup and operation of the all-in-one Si5332 over the lifetime of the product.

The company is also introducing multi-profile support available across the entire Si5332 family. This will enable developers to consolidate multiple clock tree configurations into a single part number. The multi-profile feature enables the consolidation of up to 16 unique clock tree configurations in a single IC. This means that a single Si5332 part can replace a crystal oscillator (XO) + buffer, clock generator, and clock generator + buffer clock trees.

By integrating the crystal reference inside the package, the Si5332 clock generator addresses the design limitations in traditional clock generators that rely on an external discrete quartz crystal frequency reference, said Silicon Labs.

“The crystal interface circuit must be carefully designed for capacitive load matching to ensure accurate clock synthesis,” said the company. “To minimize the risk of noise coupling, designers typically do not route high-speed signals near crystals, which limits printed circuit board (PCB) routing flexibility.”

The new chip also reduces the overall PCB footprint and improves PCB routing flexibility, while the crystal is shielded from external PCB noise, enabling the Si5332 integrated crystal device to offer lower jitter (175 fs RMS, 12 kHz to 20 MHz) compared to versions of the Si5332 using an external source (190 fs RMS), according to the company.

“The Si5332 clock generator offers the industry’s highest level of timing integration, enabling complete clock tree consolidation in 10/25/100G data center, communications, industrial, and broadcast video applications,” said James Wilson, general manager of timing products at Silicon Labs, in a statement. “This comprehensive timing solution reduces supply chain complexity [because] it’s sourced from a single supplier, Silicon Labs.”

The Si5332 clock uses Silicon Labs’ MultiSynth technology to provide any-frequency, any-output clock syntheses with excellent jitter performance. Supporting up to 12 clock outputs, selectable signal formats per output clock (LVDS, LVPECL, HCSL, LVCMOS), and independent 1.8-V to 3.3-V VDDO, the Si5332 interfaces to a range of FPGAs, ASICs, Ethernet switches/PHYs, processors, SoCs, and high-speed SerDes.

Designers can use Silicon Labs’ ClockBuilder Pro  (CBPro) software for device configuration and customization, enabling them to tailor a clock solution to their specific requirements and receive samples in two weeks. The CBPro generates a custom-orderable part number for each device with no minimum order quantity or non-recurring engineering fees or restrictions.

Samples and production quantities of the Si5332 clock generators are available now in 32-/40-/48-pin QFN packages with 6-/8-/12-output options. Pricing starts at $4.67 in quantities of 10,000. Clock and oscillator evaluation boards are available; pricing ranges from $149 to $199.