ARGO Technology Co., Ltd.

2025.Apr E-Newsletter

• Passive component: Does not generate oscillation by itself and requires an external circuit to provide power.
• High precision and stability: Frequency stability is excellent, with minimal impact from temperature and voltage changes.
• Low cost: Cheaper than quartz oscillators.
• Design flexibility: Can be paired with different external circuits to achieve various oscillation frequencies and characteristics.

Advantages:

• Cost-effective
• Can be customized with different external circuits

Disadvantages:

• Requires additional external circuits (such as oscillation circuits, load capacitors) to generate stable clock signals.
• More complex circuit design, requiring experienced engineers.
• Susceptible to interference, depending on external circuit design.

Principle:

A quartz oscillator is built upon a quartz crystal with integration of the necessary active circuitry (such as transistors and ICs) and passive components (such as resistors and capacitors). When power is provided a quartz oscillator, the internal mechanism activates the quartz crystal to continuously generate a stable clock signal.

Composition:

Includes a quartz crystal, oscillation circuit, output buffer circuit (for some models), and IC.

Characteristics:

• Active component: Generates a stable clock signal on its own, requiring no external oscillation circuits.
• Ease of use: Simply supplying power enables operation, easy for circuit design.
• High-quality output signal: Built-in buffer circuits often provide cleaner and stronger output signals.
• Multiple output types: Offers various standard output signals such as CMOS, TTL, LVPECL, LVDS, making it easier to interface with different logic circuits.

Advantages:

• Simple design, easy to use
• High-quality output signal
• Strong resistance to interference
• Shortens product development cycles

Disadvantages:

• More expensive than quartz crystal

When selecting quartz components for industrial computers, engineers should evaluate specific application needs, cost budgets, design complexity, and performance requirements. Here are some suggestions:

• Seeking cost-effectiveness and having strong design capability: If design team has extensive experience in analog circuit design and is cost-sensitive, using a quartz crystal with a well-designed oscillation circuit may be a good choice.
• Prioritizing simplified design and rapid development: If product development timelines are short and you want to simplify circuit design and reduce development risks, quartz oscillators are the better option.
• Strict requirements for signal quality and stability: In applications requiring high-precision clock signals, such as high-speed data acquisition or precision motion control, quartz oscillators with high-quality output and stability are generally more reliable.
• Space-constrained applications: Although quartz crystals are typically smaller, additional external circuits may make the overall footprint comparable to small quartz oscillators. For space-sensitive applications, consider the entire circuit size holistically.
• Environmental factors: Industrial computers often operate in harsh environments, such as high temperatures, vibration, and electromagnetic interference. Choosing quartz oscillators with strong interference resistance and wide operating temperature ranges may be beneficial.
• Output interface compatibility: Selecting quartz oscillators with appropriate output types (such as CMOS, LVDS) based on downstream logic circuit requirements can simplify interface design.

To ensure optimal clock performance for industrial computer systems, Argo Technology offers professional quartz crystal measurement and adjustment recommendations. Our expert team has extensive experience and advanced equipment to precisely measure quartz crystal parameters and provide optimal external circuit designs and component selection advice based on specific application requirements. Contact us anytime for more details.

Both quartz crystals and quartz oscillators are vital clock components in computers, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Understanding their principles and differences and selecting the right component based on application needs is crucial for designing stable, reliable, and cost-effective industrial computer systems. We hope this newsletter helps you gain deeper insights into these components and make more informed decisions in your future product designs.

ARGO is EPSON quartz and frequency control products and IC professional agents, about all kinds of related products, the above is only a brief introduction, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact the company, the company will be assigned someone to do further explanation and service for you.

ARGO Technology Co., Ltd.

6F-4, No.81, Sec. 1, Xintai 5th Rd.,Xizhi Dist., New Taipei City 221432, Taiwan

Tel: 886-2-26980598  Fax: 886-2-26980597

E-Mail: argosales@argotech.com.tw

Websites related to the Company's products

EPSON TOYOCOM Quartz Frequency Control Product and IC Products Series

Frequency Control Products

Crystal Units, Oscillators, TCXO, VCXO, VCTCXO, OCXO, SAW Filter, Ceramic Resonators/Filters

GPS & RF Solution

Patch Antenna, Chip Antenna, BPF (Band Pass Filter), E-Compass Sensor, SDARS Antenna, Bluetooth Antenna, DVB-T Antenna, TCXO for GPS, GYRO Sensor, SAW Filter, ESD Varistor, EMI/ESD Filter, GPS Module