Spread spectrum clock signal generation system and method

Abstract

A system and method for generating a clock signal having spread spectrum modulation. The method involves generating a clock signal by generating edge positions for edges of the clock signal from a digital representation of a timing for each edge to impart spread spectrum modulation to the clock signal. A programmable modulator is provided that generates digital values representing edge positions for edges of a clock signal based on at least one of a time-varying period value and a time-varying duty-cycle value. The programmable modulator may comprise a first circuit, called a period modulation circuit, that generates a time-varying digital period value, and a second circuit, called a duty-cycle modulation circuit, that generates a time-varying digital duty-cycle value. The time-varying period values and time-varying duty cycle values are processed to produce a digital edge position value that specifies an edge position for a clock signal. The programmable modulator is coupled to an arbitrary waveform synthesizer that generates timing for edges of the clock signal based on the edge position values. A variety of modulations can be imposed on the clock signal using these techniques, including triangle wave modulation, near-triangle modulation, random and pseudo-random modulation.