MEMS Oscillators: The Future has Arrived!

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ABRACON’s new MEMS-based oscillators featuring Discera PureSilicon Resonator™ technology are fabricated using the same semiconductor manufacturing techniques used in high-volume IC fabrication. ABRACON and Discera have partnered to supply this latest emerging technology product as an alternative to traditional quartz based oscillators. ABRACON’s valued customers will benefit from this partnership by having direct access to state-of-the-art solutions from a reliable and proven supplier. Discera and ABRACON will work closely together, continually providing new MEMS based products for electronics timing applications.

The MEMS resonator-based oscillators set new benchmarks for shock resistance, allowing cost saving opportunities for harsh environment applications including military, automotive, instrumentation and portable consumer electronic products.

These PureSilicon Resonator™ MEMS oscillators have been tested under random vibration up to 15G and have passed simulations up to 100G. They have also been proven to be reliable with excellent frequency stability over temperature cycling, aging and vibration.

MEMS oscillators are ideally suited for high volume consumer electronics applications where low cost and high reliability are a must. Additionally, MEMS technology offers a development road map of continued miniaturization and cost reduction.

 

FEATURES Ultra Miniature PureSilicon™ clock oscillator MEMS technology by Discera Low power consumption < 10mA Exceptional stability over temp. at 0 - 70°C Extended temperature options are available Available in 30kG shock resistance configuration Low cost-compact QFN plastic packaging Compact package design

APPLICATIONS CCD clock for VTR cameras Equipment connected to PCs Low profile equipment Lower cost crystal oscillator replacement Computers and peripherals Portable electronics (MP3 players, games) Consumer electronics such as TVs, DVRs, etc. Vibrant, shock-prone and humid environments for industrial equipment Demanding military and automotive electronics

 

 

Shock Resistance

One of the areas in which micromechanical resonator oscillators perform better over quartz crystal is the shock resistance. MEMS resonator typically has mass as small as 10-14kg and its stiffness is usually as high as tens thousand of N for high frequency structures. Simulations show being able to achieve up to 100,000g shock. The resonator itself will survive the g-shock very well.

However, the impact of the g-shock for the packaging could be severe since the packaging contains most of the mass. In this particular evaluation, we flip-chip resonator on top of an oscillator ASIC with solder balls as show below in Figure 1, which probably represent a worse case package compared to ceramic package or plastic over-mold package.

If the oscillator experience 30,000g shock along x, y, and z-axis, the z-axis stress and two shear stresses are listed in Table 1. Therefore, this type of oscillator will survive 30,000g of shock. A recent test has shown that MEMS oscillators can survived the g-shock of an air gun. All of the tested 125MHz MEMS oscillator tested did not show any performance degradation.

 

 

 

Vibration Operation

Silicon MEMS oscillators were tested under random vibration ranging from 2.84G to 50G. The output spectral out of the oven for a thermal cycle test, as shown below, the frequency deviation across the temperature did not change with time.

Based on results of a previous test, we know that the packaged resonator passed the Height Temperature Storage Life (HTSL), this data indicates that the resonator/oscillator package did not degrade with high temperature storage.

With all the reliability data shown in previous sections, and with the fact these oscillators have met the XO specification including jitter, power consumption, voltage variation, and temperature stability, MEMS-based silicon resonator oscillators are now ready for commercialized shipping in timing and frequency reference applications.

 

 

 

Please click here for the datasheet for the ASEM1, ASDM1, ASAM1 Series.

 

 

 Featured Products

Part Number		Description	Data Sheet	App. Notes
ASFLM1-1.8432MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 1.8432MHz
ASFLM1-10.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 10.000MHz
ASFLM1-11.0592MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 11.0592MHz
ASFLM1-12.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 12.000MHz
ASFLM1-14.31818MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 14.31818MHz
ASFLM1-14.7456MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 14.7456MHz
ASFLM1-16.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 16.000MHz
ASFLM1-18.432MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 18.432MHz
ASFLM1-20.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 20.000MHz
ASFLM1-24.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 24.000MHz
ASFLM1-24.576MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 24.576MHz
ASFLM1-25.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 25.000MHz
ASFLM1-27.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 27.000MHz
ASFLM1-3.6864MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 3.6864MHz
ASFLM1-30.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 30.000MHz
ASFLM1-32.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 32.000MHz
ASFLM1-33.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 33.000MHz
ASFLM1-33.333MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 33.333MHz
ASFLM1-4.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 4.000MHz
ASFLM1-40.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 40.000MHz
ASFLM1-48.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 48.000MHz
ASFLM1-50.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 50.000MHz
ASFLM1-7.3728MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 7.3728MHz
ASFLM1-8.000MHZ-C-T		Ultra Miniature Pure Silicon™ Clock Oscillator - 8.000MHz

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