Pulse wave generation from "summary" of Digital Electronics: A Primer - Introductory Logic Circuit Design by Mark S Nixon
Pulse wave generation is a process of producing a series of electrical pulses with a given frequency and amplitude. This technique can be used to create signals that can be used in a variety of different applications, such as controlling motors and powering electronic devices.- A pulse wave is an electrical signal that consists of a series of quick, sharp pulses. It can be used to ‘trigger’ or turn on circuits which will then perform some specific functions. Generation of these signals typically involves oscillators, timers or other electronic circuitry in its most basic form.
- The generation of high quality and reliable pulse waves relies on understanding the various characteristics associated with them; like amplitude, frequency, duty cycle, rise and fall times. Not only do your components have to give accurate outputs but also ensure accurate timing settings for the pulse signals generated.
- Design engineers need to select an appropriate pulse generator architecture suitable to their application in order to generate timely and precise pulses for desired results. If one needs a single-shot operation, they may go for an astable multivibrator with RC timing arrangement, whereas if regular pulses are needed, then a monostable multivibrator design is preferred.
- As per the IEEE Standard 1044.6 STP (Standard Test Procedures), various stability parameters of a pulse circuit should be checked; like frequency accuracy, rise/fall times, pulse width jitter, duty cycle accuracy and ripple periodical and random noise. In addition, pulse peak amplitudes must sometimes meet certain minimum levels of voltage as indicated in the requirements of the particular system.
- To get reliable performance in such circuits, it is important to consider components’ temperature dependability and drift caused by aging, lesioning and external sources of noise. Any issues due to either of these need to be addressed through design optimization before deployment.
- When evaluating different designs, several aspects should be kept in mind, firstly, minimising power supply sensitivity for desired output level and secondly maintaining immunity from electromagnetic disturbances in the surrounding environment. Finally, you could choose designs having fewer components with lower cost in comparison to others giving similar performance.
