Digitally-controlled oscillator with switched-capacitor frequency

Abstract

A digitally-controlled oscillator (DCO) (60), such as may be used in clock generator or clock recovery circuitry in an integrated circuit, is disclosed. The disclosed DCO (60) is a single-stage oscillator including a variable load implemented as a binary-weighted array of switched capacitors (40). Each of capacitors (40) has a plate connected to a common node (X), and a plate that receives a signal corresponding to one bit of a digital control word (DCOCW). The common capacitor node (X) is also connected to the input of a Schmitt trigger (42) that produces the output clock signal (OUTCLK) and a feedback signal that is applied to logic (38, 39) that inverts the common node of the capacitors (40). The switching time at the input of Schmitt trigger (42) depends upon the variable load presented by the array of switched capacitors (40), which is controlled by the digital control word (DCOCW). As a result, the clock signal (OUTCLK) is digitally synthesized by a single stage of the DCO (60). A digital phase-locked loop (PLL) clock generator circuit (50) including a phase detector (64), digital loop filter (62) in combination with the DCO (60), and a programmable frequency divider (66) providing a feedback path from the output of the DCO (60) to the phase detector (64), is also disclosed. The PLL clock generator (50) may be used in an integrated circuit such as a digital signal processor (30) or microprocessor, and is particularly well-suited for use in a battery-powered portable electronic system (200).