I am a newbie to circuit design and I need a 50MHz clock. I went to a local electronics store and got a 2-pin radial Quartz crystal. I do not have a data sheet for this. The only markings for the part are on top that says "FS50.00" [the double quotes are mine]. The packaging seems to be referred to as metal can (long rectangle with round sides).
Does anyone have any ideas which part this might be and how to make this thing oscillate ? I have tried some circuits with a resistor at 3.3v but it does not look like I am getting anywhere.
Best Answer
Chances are pretty good that a "50MHz" crystal is actually a 3rd overtone crystal, and if you make a simple Pierce oscillator (eg. with a 74HCU04) it will oscillate at 16.6667 MHz. If you only want it to oscillate at some frequency, not 50.000 MHz, then you can use the common circuit (load capacitors, some M ohm bias resistor, 1/6 of an unbuffered gate).
To get the 50MHz, something like this should work, if it's a 3rd overtone crystal:
You will want to reduce the inductance to more like 8 turns, some experimentation may be required. Circuit is from here.