-- Suitable for portable, consumer, and embedded designs where space and power are critical
Ultra-compact Si512xx clock generator --

February 9, 2012 – Silicon Laboratories Inc. (Country Manager Jong-Chan Lee), a leader in analog-intensive, high-performance mixed-signal ICs, today unveiled the industry's smallest and lowest-power custom configurable clock generators. Available in an ultra-small 1.7mm x 1.7mm package, Silicon Labs' new Si512xx clock generator family delivers up to 60% less power than competitor solutions and is suitable for embedded and consumer electronics where space is limited and cost is a critical consideration. These products are utilized in a wide range of applications where power is critical, including portable media players (PMPs), industrial metering and monitoring, portable navigation devices (PNDs), handsets, and digital cameras.

The Si512xx clock, part of Silicon Labs' comprehensive programmable timing portfolio, is a highly customizable device. The Si512xx clock generator supports up to three LVCMOS clock outputs ranging from 3 to 200 MHz in a single device, maximizing developer flexibility while simplifying supply chain management. Each output features four levels of output intensity settings that can be individually configured to match board trace length conditions and loads, exceeding the configurability of the closest competitor's products by more than double.

The ultra-small Si512xx clock uses up to 80% less board space than competitor clock generator ICs and can be used instead of LVCMOS oscillators under 200MHz to reduce costs. The single-chip Si512xx clock generator supports multiple LVCMOS outputs, thereby replacing multiple surface-mount crystals and oscillators with a single economical device, further reducing board space and BOM costs.

In addition to excellent cost and space savings, these ultra-compact clock generators reduce power consumption by up to 60% compared to competitor solutions, supporting eco-friendly initiatives. This double-low power advantage translates into significant benefits, such as improved battery life for power-critical applications ranging from smart meters to handheld devices. Furthermore, the Si512xx clocks enable ultra-low power modes in standby or sleep states through the Output Enable (OE) function.

The Si512xx clock generator minimizes electromagnetic interference (EMI) based on customizable spread-spectrum clocking technology. Through this frequency modulation technique, system designers can reduce EMI by spreading clock energy over a wider frequency range, thereby consequently reducing peak emissions at the fundamental frequency and all harmonics. The Si512xx further reduces EMI and increases system margins for data integrity through an innovative approach to customizable edge-rate slewing configuration. The highly flexible architecture of the Si512xx clock family supports specific spread spectrum and edge rate slew profiles, percentages, modulation types, and/or rates, allowing it to be customized at the factory to meet customer specifications for output frequency, control input, and drive strength.

"No other small footprint clock solution currently on the market offers the high level of integration, power efficiency, and configurability of the Si512xx clock family," said Mike Petrowski, General Manager of Timing Products at Silicon Labs. "Like our other timing device families, these clock generator ICs provide the industry's shortest lead times for custom clocks to streamline development cycles."