Timing Recovery/Synchronization

In many communications systems, including data storage channels, the exact transmission frequency and/or phase are not known. Recovery of the data must, therefore, include a method for synchronizing the received data with the transmitted (or written) data. This typically involves a feedback controlled sampler in which the frequency and phase, set close to their correct values, are slowly adjusted in response to synchronization errors in received samples.

Research at the CDSLab is currently focusing on methods for improving the phase detection part of the timing loop as well as an alternative technique known as asynchronous sampling.