Why are these apparently special, surely timers like this are a dime a dozen, what gives?
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Did you read the article? Much of it is devoted to explaining what needs these chips serve. A bit more detail is contained in SiTime's press release that is linked in the first paragraph.Why are these apparently special, surely timers like this are a dime a dozen, what gives?
Well it is described as being a "low power oscillator" the term "timer" or "timing" does not even appear in the device's datasheet. So it is an oscillator and these are a dime a dozen, NE555? so that's what I'm driving at, what exactly makes these devices so special? I'm not saying they aren't, only that I have no idea what it is that actually makes them noteworthy.Did you read the article? Much of it is devoted to explaining what needs these chips serve. A bit more detail is contained in SiTime's press release that is linked in the first paragraph.
What are some of the "dime a dozen" timing ICs that meet these needs going forward?
OK I see, so these are actually very high stability oscillators, not "timing chips", that's where my confusion arose.I don't quite think a 555 will manage phase jitter of less than 750 femto-seconds, and the frequency won't be stable within 50ppm over the full operating range, because an ordinary ruthenium oxide surface mount resistor only manages 100ppm/°C; but I still think that the calculated distance between the car and the one it's about to crash into could vary by >0.1% without making much difference to its ability to avoid the crash.
Well in relativly cheap cars such as a Hyundai I30 they have active braking when in cruise. From experience if a vehicle in front of me stops suddenly, so does mine. They will also self steer betwean lane line markings. So yes there is need for accuracy in the electronics.I'd like to know what's so unusual, unique, about car systems, that such high stability is deemed essential anyway.
A 555-based oscillator would be nowhere near good enough for many of these applications.Well it is described as being a "low power oscillator" the term "timer" or "timing" does not even appear in the device's datasheet. So it is an oscillator and these are a dime a dozen, NE555? so that's what I'm driving at, what exactly makes these devices so special? I'm not saying they aren't, only that I have no idea what it is that actually makes them noteworthy.
I never knew that - it doesn't ring true (dreadful pun) with my own experience. Semiconductors fail more than MLCC capacitors (which part company with their metallisation), and MLCC capacitors fail more than crystals.In the world of electronics reliability, everybody hates crystals.