Vectron International Launches Spread-Spectrum Oscillator For EMI Reduction Applications
Hudson, NH — Vectron International recently announced the new spread-spectrum VSS4 oscillator designed to help customers meet stringent FCC restrictions on the amount of electro-magnetic interference (EMI) allowed for a range of communications system and consumer electronics applications. Vectron's latest oscillator provides the temperature and aging stability advantages of crystal oscillators along with the ability to drastically reduce the amount of oscillator-produced EMI. The VSS4 will allow design engineers to meet performance goals for a host of consumer and enterprise applications, including wireless, DSL, and broadband over power and cable modems, Blu-ray Disc players, medical instrumentation, and routers, while ensuring they meet the FCC's EMI regulations. The company showcased these new products in Booth 1501 held at the 2008 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium, to be held June 17-19, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia.
"Vectron is committed to growing our industry-leading precision oscillator portfolio to meet our customers' changing needs. This dedication to continual product innovation is particularly important to customers in the communications and consumer electronics markets, who are looking to evolve their platforms while meeting stringent industry regulations," said Alan Mond, vice president of global sales, Vectron. "Our new VSS4 spread-spectrum oscillator provides these customers with the stability and performance they have come to expect from Vectron, while enabling them to comply with FCC restrictions."
EMI, a disturbance created when electromagnetic radiation is emitted from an external source, such as a clock oscillator, can interrupt, block and degrade the performance of an electrical circuit, and create cross-interference between electrical devices. To limit the impact of EMI on consumer electronics, the FCC enacted FCC Part 15, which requires that electronic equipment be certified as not causing harmful interference.
Because clock oscillators radiate RF energy emissions that can impact other pieces of electrical equipment, consumer electronics design engineers have faced the challenge of selecting a clock source that provides the stability needed to perform over temperature and time, while ensuring the EMI emitted from the oscillator does not exceed stringent FCC regulations. Spread-spectrum oscillators, like Vectron's VSS4, can help engineers address this problem by slowly changing the clock's output frequency, spreading the peak energy over a wider spectrum.
Vectron's VSS4 is available from 12MHz to 168MHz and offers operation in a -40 to 85 degree Celsius temperature range. The new oscillator operates off 3.3V and has an enable/disable feature to allow the clock output to be disabled for board testing. The VSS4 is housed in a 5 x 3.2 mm ceramic package, providing greater hermetic sealing for optimum EMI shielding versus plastic packages, which are not hermetic.
The VSS4 is currently available.
SOURCE: Vectron International