SATCOM Timing

Satellite terminal reference clocks engineered for EVM margin, vibration environments, and power budgets

Reference clock selection for a satellite terminal is a system-level design decision, not a single-spec comparison. Phase noise, multiplied up the frequency chain, directly compresses EVM margin for high-order modulation; mechanical vibration converts to sidebands through g-sensitivity, threatening link quality on SOTM vehicular, airborne, and maritime platforms; power consumption and warm-up time determine whether an always-on architecture is feasible. Taitien addresses the two critical paths separately: ultra-low-power OCXOs for the timing core, and low g-sensitivity OCXOs for the RF LO reference path. Applications cover fixed, SOTM vehicular, airborne Ku/Ka, and maritime satellite terminals, as well as station timing references for gateways and teleports.

  • Ultra-low-power OCXO platform: up to 80–90% lower power vs legacy designs for always-on terminal architectures
  • Low g-sensitivity OCXOs: suppressing vibration sidebands to protect RF LO path spectral purity
  • Ultra-compact low g-sensitivity TCXOs: down to 3.2 x 2.5 mm for LEO satellite communications and GNSS positioning
  • Low phase noise design: protecting EVM margin for high-order modulation
  • Fast warm-up and holdover: shorter time-to-service and link continuity through GNSS outages

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