The beating heart of most electronic systems today is the crystal oscillator. While devices based on microelectromechanical-system (MEMS) technology are definitely making inroads in this application, ...

Today, the majority of electronic circuits (including microprocessors, microcontrollers, FPGAs, and CPLDs) are based on clocked logic, requiring a timing source. Depending on the frequency accuracy ...

Appropriately cut quartz crystals can be used as high-quality electromechanical resonators. Their piezoelectric properties (voltage across the crystal deforms it; deforming the crystal generates a ...

Fig 1. This Pierce-series resonant oscillator can reliably start at supply voltages as low as 2.4 V. It also draws very low current, ensuring long battery life. Fig 2. An oscilloscope photo shows the ...