
AD9231
Rev. A | Page 29 of 36
HARDWARE INTERFACE
The pins described in
Table 13 constitute the physical interface
between the programming device of the user and the serial port
of the AD9231. The SCLK pin and the CSB pin function as inputs
when using the SPI interface. The SDIO pin is bidirectional,
functioning as an input during write phases and as an output
during readback.
The SPI interface is flexible enough to be controlled by
either FPGAs or microcontrollers. One method for SPI
configuration is described in detail in the AN-812 Appli-
cation Note, Microcontroller-Based Serial Port Interface
(SPI) Boot Circuit.
The SPI port should not be active during periods when the full
dynamic performance of the converter is required. Because the
SCLK signal, the CSB signal, and the SDIO signal are typically
asynchronous to the ADC clock, noise from these signals can
degrade converter performance. If the on-board SPI bus is used
for other devices, it may be necessary to provide buffers between
this bus and the AD9231 to prevent these signals from transi-
tioning at the converter inputs during critical sampling periods.
SDIO/DCS and SCLK/DFS serve a dual function when the
SPI interface is not being used. When the pins are strapped to
DRVDD or ground during device power-on, they are associated
the strappable functions supported on the AD9231.
CONFIGURATION WITHOUT THE SPI
In applications that do not interface to the SPI control registers,
the SDIO/DCS pin, the SCLK/DFS pin, the OEB pin, and the
PDWN pin serve as standalone CMOS-compatible control
pins. When the device is powered up, it is assumed that the
user intends to use the pins as static control lines for the duty
cycle stabilizer, output data format, output enable, and power-
down feature control. In this mode, connect the CSB chip select
to DRVDD, which disables the serial port interface.
Table 14. Mode Selection
Pin
External
Voltage
Configuration
DRVDD
Duty cycle stabilizer enabled
SDIO/DCS
AGND(default)
Duty cycle stabilizer disabled
DRVDD
Twos complement enabled
SCLK/DFS
AGND (default)
Offset binary enabled
DRVDD
Outputs in high impedance
OEB
AGND (default)
Outputs enabled
DRVDD
Chip in power-down or standby
PDWN
AGND (default)
Normal operation
SPI ACCESSIBLE FEATURES
Table 15 provides a brief description of the general features that
are accessible via the SPI. These features are described in detail
in the AN-877 Application Note, Interfacing to High Speed ADCs
via SPI. The AD9231 part-specific features are described in
Table 15. Features Accessible Using the SPI
Feature
Description
Mode
Allows the user to set either power-down mode
or standby mode
Clock
Allows the user to access the DCS via the SPI
Offset
Allows the user to digitally adjust the
converter offset
Test I/O
Allows the user to set test modes to have known
data on output bits
Output Mode
Allows the user to set up outputs
Output Phase
Allows the user to set the output clock polarity
Output Delay
Allows the user to vary the DCO delay