SiTime Corp., a MEMS and analog semiconductor company and a wholly owned subsidiary of MegaChips Corp., introduced an innovative Elite Platform™ encompassing Super-TCXOs™ (temperature compensated oscillators) and oscillators. These precision devices are engineered to solve long-standing timing problems in telecommunications and networking equipment. With the Elite Platform, communications equipment can deliver the highest performance, best reliability and highest quality of service, even in the presence of environmental stressors.

“Network densification is driving rapid deployment of equipment in uncontrolled environments such as basements, curbsides, rooftops, and on poles. Precision timing components in these systems must now operate in the presence of high temperature, thermal shock, vibration and unpredictable airflow. Service providers are questioning if quartz technology is up to this challenge,” said Rajesh Vashist, CEO at SiTime. “Customers have enthusiastically validated SiTime’s MEMS-based Elite Platform, as it uniquely solves such environmental issues. We believe that our new Elite solutions will transform the $1.5 billion telecommunications and networking timing market.”

Elite timing solutions are based on an innovative DualMEMS™ architecture with TurboCompensation™. This architecture delivers exceptional dynamic performance with three key elements:

  • Robust, reliable, and proven TempFlat MEMS™ that eliminates activity dips and enables 30 times better vibration immunity than quartz
  • DualMEMS temperature sensing with 100% accurate thermal coupling that enables 40 times faster temperature tracking, which ensures the best performance under airflow and rapid temperature changes
  • Highly integrated mixed-signal circuits with on-chip regulators, a TDC (temperature to digital converter) and a low-noise PLL that deliver 5 times better immunity to power-supply noise, 30 uK temperature resolution that is 10 times better than quartz, and support for any frequency between 1 and 700 MHz

“New telecom infrastructure uses 4G/5G small cells and Synchronous Ethernet to increase network data capacity; the high-power components that are used in such systems will have high and constantly changing heat loads,” said Joe Madden, founder and principal analyst at Mobile Experts. “The dynamic performance of precision timing components during rapid temperature change will become a critical requirement in such equipment. MEMS technology inherently performs better in the presence of dynamic environmental conditions, and has become a very interesting alternative to quartz technology.”

About the Elite MEMS Timing Families
The Elite Platform comprises four new product families with a wide range of frequencies and the following unique features. All Elite solutions offer 0.1 ppb/g vibration immunity and do not have activity dips or micro-jumps.

Stratum 3 compliant precision Super-TCXOs for core and edge networks

  • ±100 ppb frequency stability over -40°C to +105°C, the widest operating temperature available with any TCXO
  • 1 to 5 ppb/°C frequency slope (ΔF/ΔT) at an extremely fast temperature ramp rate of 10°C/minute, a performance level that is unique among timing devices
  • 3e-11 Allan deviation (ADEV) at 10 second averaging time, 10 times better than typical quartz TCXOs
  • 0.2 ps/mV power supply noise rejection (PSNR), eliminates dedicated system LDO
  • Optional I2C/SPI frequency tuning, eliminates external DAC

Super-TCXOs for GNSS, industrial and automotive applications

  • ±0.5 ppm frequency stability over -40°C to +105°C

Ultra-low jitter differential oscillators

  • 0.23 ps integrated RMS phase jitter (12 kHz to 20 MHz)
  • 0.1 ps integrated RMS phase jitter under Ethernet mask for 10G/40G/100G
  • ±10 ppm frequency stability over -40°C to +95°C, enabling better system reliability

High-temperature high-reliability differential VCXOs

  • Up to +95°C with excellent phase noise
  • Wide pull range from ±25 ppm to ±3600 ppm
  • 0.1% frequency tuning linearity under all conditions, 50 times better than quartz

Engineering samples of the Elite-based ultra-low jitter differential oscillators and high-temperature VCXOs are available to qualified customers now. Samples of Elite-based Super-TCXOs are expected to be available in the first half of 2017. Pricing is available upon request.

See a live demonstration of Elite Super-TCXO performance at ITSF 2016 (International Timing & Sync Forum) from November 1-3, 2016.

More information is available at www.sitime.com.