An exemplary system includes a PLL circuit and a precision timing circuit connected to the PLL circuit. The PLL circuit has a PLL feedback period defined by a reference clock and includes a voltage controlled oscillator configured to lock to the reference clock and having a plurality of stages configured to output a plurality of fine phase signals each having a different phase, and a feedback divider configured to be clocked by a single fine phase signal included in the plurality of fine phase signals and have a plurality of feedback divider states during the PLL feedback period. The precision timing circuit is configured to generate a timing pulse and set, based on a first combination of one of the fine phase signals and one of the feedback divider states, a temporal position of the timing pulse within the PLL feedback period.

A random number generator includes a ring oscillator, an inversion selecting circuit, and controller. The ring oscillator includes an inverter chain having at least one inverter and generates an output signal. The inversion selecting circuit controlling a phase inverter configured to invert a signal of the inverter chain. The controller is configured to operate the inversion selecting circuit to provide an output of the first phase inverter to the inverter chain during a first operation mode to measure a frequency of the ring oscillator and operate the inversion selecting circuit to not provide the output of the phase inverter during a second operation mode for generating a random number.

A security device includes a bus interface and circuitry. The bus interface is coupled to a bus connecting between a host device and a peripheral device. The circuitry is configured to receive, via the bus interface, a clock signal of the bus, and to produce a delayed clock signal relative to the clock signal. The circuitry is further configured to monitor, using the clock signal, transactions communicated between the host device and the peripheral device, in response to identifying a given transaction, of which a portion is expected to be delayed by a predefined time delay relative to the clock signal, to sample the portion of the given transaction using the delayed clock signal, and in response to identifying, based on the sampled portion, that the given transaction violates a security policy, to apply a security action.

Disclosed is a frequency dividing circuit, a frequency dividing method and a phase locked loop. The frequency dividing circuit comprises: a clock selection unit outputting a first clock signal, select a second clock signal lagging behind the first clock signal by (½-1/M) of one phase; an integer frequency dividing unit performing frequency division on the first clock signal to provide a frequency-divided clock signal; a trigger unit triggering the frequency-divided clock signal according to the second clock signal to obtain a modulation clock signal; a switching signal unit providing a switching signal according to the modulation clock signal and a preset target output frequency. The clock selection unit selects and further outputs a third clock signal as the first clock signal according to the target phase selection information, to adjust the frequency of the frequency-divided clock signal, reduce noise and improve loop bandwidth of the phase locked loop.

A device and method of clock synchronization for external memory interface. The device, and method, generating a clock output from a phase lock loop block via a sub-module clocking component; multiplexing the clock output through a global clock into different clock domains; clocking the data and an address or a command path by each clock domain; clocking the phase compensation FIFO by clock domain and clock phase alignment clock; generating the pointer for the phase compensation FIFO from central pointer generator block; and synchronizing the pointer of the adjacent intellectual property module with a parent intellectual property module.

Methods and systems are described for receiving N phases of a local clock signal and M phases of a reference signal, wherein M is an integer greater than or equal to 1 and N is an integer greater than or equal to 2, generating a plurality of partial phase error signals, each partial phase error signal formed at least in part by comparing (i) a respective phase of the M phases of the reference signal to (ii) a respective phase of the N phases of the local clock signal, and generating a composite phase error signal by summing the plurality of partial phase error signals, and responsively adjusting a fixed phase of a local oscillator using the composite phase error signal.

An oscillator provides a plurality of clock signals, including a first clock signal having a first frequency and a first period, wherein each clock signal has the first frequency and is phase shifted from the first clock signal by an integer times a predetermined fractional amount of the first period. A multiphase frequency divider receives the plurality of clock signals and provides a divided clock output, and includes an integer frequency divider which provides the divided clock output based on a modified clock input and a clock selector which provides a current clock as the modified clock input during a first portion of the divided clock output and a next clock as the modified clock input during a subsequent portion of the divided clock output. The next clock is selected from the plurality of clock signals based on a selected fractional phase shift amount indicated by a sigma-delta modulator.

A method and apparatus of generating precision phase skews is disclosed. In some embodiments, a phase skew generator includes: a charge pump having a first mode of operation and a second mode of operation, wherein the first mode of operation provides a first current path during a first time period, and the second mode of operation provides a second current path during a second time period following the first time period; a sample and hold circuit, coupled to a capacitor, and configured to sample a voltage level of the capacitor at predetermined times and provide an output voltage during a third time period following the second time period; and a voltage controlled delay line, coupled to the sample and hold circuit, and having M delay line stages each configured to output a signal having a phase skew offset with respect to preceding or succeeding signal.

A circuit and corresponding method control cycle time of an output clock used to clock at least one other circuit. The circuit comprises an agile ring oscillator (ARO) and ARO controller. The ARO includes at least one instance of a first ring oscillator (RO) and second RO that generate high and low phases, respectively, of cycles of the output clock. The ARO controller controls durations of the high and low phases, independently, via first and second control words output to the ARO, respectively. In a present cycle of the output clock, the ARO controller effects a change to the high or low phase, or a combination thereof, in a next cycle of the output clock by updating the first or second control word, or a combination thereof, based on an indication of expected usage of the at least one other circuit in the next cycle. The change improves a performance-to-power ratio of the at least one other circuit.

Disclosed is a frequency dividing circuit, a frequency dividing method and a phase locked loop. The frequency dividing circuit comprises: a clock selection unit outputting a first clock signal, select a second clock signal lagging behind the first clock signal by (½-1/M) of one phase; an integer frequency dividing unit performing frequency division on the first clock signal to provide a frequency-divided clock signal; a trigger unit triggering the frequency-divided clock signal according to the second clock signal to obtain a modulation clock signal; a switching signal unit providing a switching signal according to the modulation clock signal and a preset target output frequency. The clock selection unit selects and further outputs a third clock signal as the first clock signal according to the target phase selection information, to adjust the frequency of the frequency-divided clock signal, reduce noise and improve loop bandwidth of the phase locked loop.