Data Sheet AD9554
Rev. D | Page 37 of 116
Writing to these registers requires an IO_UPDATE by writing
0x01 to Register 0x000F before the new values take effect.
To make small adjustments to the output frequency, vary the
FRAC (FRAC0 through FRAC3) and issue an IO_UPDATE.
The advantage to using only FRAC to adjust the output
frequency is that the DPLL does not briefly enter holdover.
Therefore, the FRAC bit can be updated as quickly as the phase
detector frequency of the DPLL.
Writing to the N (N0 through N3) and MOD (M0 through M3)
dividers allows larger changes to the output frequency. When
the AD9554 detects a write in the N or MOD value, it
automatically enters and exits holdover for a brief instant
without any disturbance in the output frequency. This limits
how quickly the output frequency can be adapted.
It is important to note that the amount of frequency adjustment
is limited to ±100 ppm before the output PLL (APLL) needs a
recalibration. Variations larger than ±100 ppm are possible, but
such variations can compromise the ability of the AD9554 to
maintain lock over temperature extremes.
It is also important to remember that the rate of change in
output frequency depends on the DPLL loop bandwidth.
DPLL Phase Lock Detector
The DPLL contains an all-digital phase lock detector. The user
controls the threshold sensitivity and hysteresis of the phase
detector via the profile registers.
The lock detector behaves in a manner analogous to water in a
tub (see Figure 29). The total capacity of the tub is 4096 units,
with −2048 denoting empty, 0 denoting the 50% point, and
+2048 denoting full. The tub also has a safeguard to prevent
overflow. Furthermore, the tub has a low water mark at −1024
and a high water mark at +1024. To change the water level, the
user adds water with a fill bucket or removes water with a drain
bucket. The user specifies the size of the fill and drain buckets
via the 8-bit fill rate and drain rate values in the profile registers.
The water level in the tub is what the lock detector uses to
determine the lock and unlock conditions. When the water level
is below the low water mark (−1024), the lock detector indicates
an unlock condition. Conversely, when the water level is above
the high water mark (+1024), the lock detector indicates a lock
condition. When the water level is between the marks, the lock
detector holds its last condition. This concept appears
graphically in Figure 29, with an overlay of an example of the
instantaneous water level (vertical) vs. time (horizontal) and the
resulting lock/unlock states.
0
2048
–2048
1024
–1024
LOCK LEVEL
UNLOCK LEVEL
LOCKED UNLOCKED
PREVIOUS
STATE
FILL
RATE DRAIN
RATE
12132-017
Figure 33. Lock Detector Diagram
During any given PFD phase error sample, the lock detector
either adds water with the fill bucket or removes water with the
drain bucket (one or the other but not both). The decision of
whether to add or remove water depends on the threshold level
specified by the user. The phase lock threshold value is a 24-bit
number stored in the profile registers and is expressed in
picoseconds. Thus, the phase lock threshold extends from 10 ns
to ±16.7 µs and represents the magnitude of the phase error at
the output of the PFD.
The phase lock detector compares each phase error sample at
the output of the PFD to the programmed phase threshold value. If
the absolute value of the phase error sample is less than or equal
to the programmed phase threshold value, the detector control
logic dumps one fill bucket into the tub. Otherwise, it removes
one drain bucket from the tub. Note that it is the magnitude,
relative to the phase threshold value, that determines whether to fill
or drain the bucket, and not the polarity of the phase error sample.
If more filling is taking place than draining, the water level in
the tub eventually rises above the high water mark (+1024),
which causes the lock detector to indicate lock. If more draining
is taking place than filling, the water level in the tub eventually
falls below the low water mark (−1024), which causes the lock
detector to indicate unlock. The ability to specify the threshold
level, fill rate, and drain rate enables the user to tailor the
operation of the lock detector to the statistics of the timing jitter
associated with the input reference signal.
Note that whenever the AD9554 enters the free run or holdover
mode, the DPLL phase lock detector indicates an unlocked
state. However, when the AD9554 performs a reference switch,
phase step detection, or loop bandwidth change, the state of the
lock detector prior to the switch is preserved during the
transition period.
DPLL Frequency Lock Detector
The operation of the frequency lock detector is identical to that
of the phase lock detector. The only difference is that the fill or
drain decision is based on the period deviation between the
reference and feedback signals of the DPLL instead of the phase
error at the output of the PFD.
The frequency lock detector uses a 24-bit frequency threshold
register specified in units of picoseconds. Thus, the frequency
threshold value extends from 10 ps to ±16.7 µs. It represents the
magnitude of the difference in period between the reference
and feedback signals at the input to the DPLL. For example, if
the divided down reference signal is 80 kHz and the feedback
signal is 79.32 kHz, the period difference is approximately
107.16 ns (|1/80,000 − 1/79,320| ≈ 107.16 ns).
Frequency Clamp
The AD9554 digital PLL features a digital tuning word clamp
that ensures that the digital PLL output frequency stays within a
defined range. This feature is very useful to eliminate undesirable
behavior in cases where the reference input clocks may be
unpredictable.