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Published on: February 29, 2012
Implementation of high-resolution time-to-digital converter in 8-bit microcontrollers.
1Department of Physics, University of Gothenburg, SE-412 96 Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Review of Scientific Instruments
|May 8, 2012
Summary
This study presents a direct method for implementing a time-to-digital converter (TDC) on an 8-bit microcontroller. The developed TDC achieves 0.17 ns resolution for time intervals between 1-10 μs.
Area of Science:
- Electronics
- Embedded Systems
- Digital Signal Processing
Background:
- Implementing high-resolution time-to-digital converters (TDCs) often requires specialized hardware.
- Integrating complex measurement functionalities into low-cost microcontrollers presents a significant engineering challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate a direct implementation of a sub-nanosecond resolution time-to-digital converter (TDC) using an 8-bit microcontroller.
- To showcase a cost-effective TDC solution utilizing minimal external passive components.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing five bidirectional digital input-output pins of a microcontroller.
- Employing a simple passive component network (two resistors, one capacitor, one diode).
- Implementing output linearization through a combination of look-up tables and interpolation.
Main Results:
- Achieved a time-to-digital converter (TDC) with 0.17 ns resolution.
- Successfully implemented the TDC for measuring time intervals within the 1-10 μs range.
- Demonstrated effective output linearization for accurate measurements.
Conclusions:
- A sub-nanosecond resolution time-to-digital converter (TDC) can be directly implemented on an 8-bit microcontroller.
- This direct method offers a low-component-count and cost-effective solution for high-resolution time measurements.
- The linearization technique ensures the practical usability of the developed TDC.
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