COMP — Comparator

The comparator (COMP) compares an input voltage (VIN+) against a second input voltage (VIN-). VIN+ can be derived either from an analog input pin (AIN0-AIN6) or VDD/2. VIN- can be derived from multiple sources depending on the operation mode of the comparator.

Main features of the comparator are:

Figure 1. Comparator overview
Diagram: Comparator overview

Once enabled (using the ENABLE register), the comparator is started by triggering the START task and stopped by triggering the STOP task. After a start-up time of tCOMP,START, the comparator will generate a READY event to indicate that it is ready for use and that its output is correct. When the COMP module is started, events will be generated every time VIN+ crosses VIN-.

Operation modes

The comparator can be configured to operate in two main operation modes, differential mode and single-ended mode. See the MODE register for more information. In both operation modes, the comparator can operate in different speed and power consumption modes (low-power, normal and high-speed). High-speed mode will consume more power compared to low-power mode, and low-power mode will result in slower response time compared to high-speed mode.

Use the PSEL register to select any of the AIN0-AIN6 pins (or VDD/2) as VIN+ input, irregardless of the operation mode selected for the comparator. The source of VIN- depends on which operation mode is used:

  • Differential mode: Derived directly from AIN0 to AIN7
  • Single-ended mode: Derived from VREF. VREF can be derived from VDD, AIN0-AIN7 or internal 1.2 V, 1.8 V and 2.4 V references.

The selected analog pins will be acquired by the comparator once it is enabled.

An optional hysteresis on VIN+ and VIN- can be enabled when the module is used in differential mode through the HYST register. In single-ended mode, VUP and VDOWN thresholds can be set to implement a hysteresis using the reference ladder (see Comparator in single-ended mode ). This hysteresis is in the order of magnitude of 30 mV, and shall prevent noise on the signal to create unwanted events. See Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts below VUP for illustration of the effect of an active hysteresis on a noisy input signal.

An upward crossing will generate an UP event and a downward crossing will generate a DOWN event. The CROSS event will be generated every time there is a crossing, independent of direction.

The immediate value of the comparator can be sampled to RESULT register by triggering the SAMPLE task.

Differential mode

In differential mode, the reference input VIN- is derived directly from one of the AINx pins.

Before enabling the comparator via the ENABLE register, the following registers must be configured for the differential mode:

Figure 2. Comparator in differential mode
Comparator in differential mode

Restriction: Depending on the device, not all the analog inputs may be available for each MUX. See definitions for PSEL and EXTREFSEL for more information about which analog pins are available on a particular device.

When HYST register is turned on while in this mode, the output of the comparator (and associated events) will change from ABOVE to BELOW whenever VIN+ becomes lower than VIN- - (VDIFFHYST / 2). It will also change from BELOW to ABOVE whenever VIN+ becomes higher than VIN- + (VDIFFHYST / 2). This behavior is illustrated in Hysteresis enabled in differential mode.

Figure 3. Hysteresis enabled in differential mode
Hysteresis enabled in differential mode

Single-ended mode

In single-ended mode, VIN- is derived from the reference ladder.

Before enabling the comparator via the ENABLE register, the following registers must be configured for the single-ended mode:

The reference ladder uses the reference voltage (VREF) to derive two new voltage references, VUP and VDOWN. VUP and VDOWN are configured using THUP and THDOWN respectively in the TH register. VREF can be derived from any of the available reference sources, configured using the EXTREFSEL and REFSEL registers as illustrated in Comparator in single-ended mode . When AREF is selected in the REFSEL register, the EXTREFSEL register is used to select one of the AIN0-AIN7 analog input pins as reference input. The selected analog pins will be acquired by the comparator once it is enabled.

Figure 4. Comparator in single-ended mode
Diagram: Comparator in single-ended mode

Restriction: Depending on the device, not all the analog inputs may be available for each MUX. See definitions for PSEL and EXTREFSEL for more information about which analog pins are available on a particular device.

When the comparator core detects that VIN+ > VIN-, i.e. ABOVE as per the RESULT register, VIN- will switch to VDOWN. When VIN+ falls below VIN- again, VIN- will be switched back to VUP. By specifying VUP larger than VDOWN, a hysteresis can be generated as illustrated in Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts below VUP and Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts above VUP.

Writing to HYST has no effect in single-ended mode, and the content of this register is ignored.

Figure 5. Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts below VUP
Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts below VUP

Figure 6. Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts above VUP
Hysteresis example where VIN+ starts above VUP

Registers

Table 1. Instances
Base address Peripheral Instance Description Configuration
0x40013000 COMP COMP

General purpose comparator

   
Table 2. Register overview
Register Offset Description
TASKS_START 0x000

Start comparator

 
TASKS_STOP 0x004

Stop comparator

 
TASKS_SAMPLE 0x008

Sample comparator value

 
EVENTS_READY 0x100

COMP is ready and output is valid

 
EVENTS_DOWN 0x104

Downward crossing

 
EVENTS_UP 0x108

Upward crossing

 
EVENTS_CROSS 0x10C

Downward or upward crossing

 
SHORTS 0x200

Shortcuts between local events and tasks

 
INTEN 0x300

Enable or disable interrupt

 
INTENSET 0x304

Enable interrupt

 
INTENCLR 0x308

Disable interrupt

 
RESULT 0x400

Compare result

 
ENABLE 0x500

COMP enable

 
PSEL 0x504

Pin select

 
REFSEL 0x508

Reference source select for single-ended mode

 
EXTREFSEL 0x50C

External reference select

 
TH 0x530

Threshold configuration for hysteresis unit

 
MODE 0x534

Mode configuration

 
HYST 0x538

Comparator hysteresis enable

 

TASKS_START

Address offset: 0x000

Start comparator

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A W

TASKS_START

   

Start comparator

     

Trigger

1

Trigger task

TASKS_STOP

Address offset: 0x004

Stop comparator

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A W

TASKS_STOP

   

Stop comparator

     

Trigger

1

Trigger task

TASKS_SAMPLE

Address offset: 0x008

Sample comparator value

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A W

TASKS_SAMPLE

   

Sample comparator value

     

Trigger

1

Trigger task

EVENTS_READY

Address offset: 0x100

COMP is ready and output is valid

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

EVENTS_READY

   

COMP is ready and output is valid

     

NotGenerated

0

Event not generated

     

Generated

1

Event generated

EVENTS_DOWN

Address offset: 0x104

Downward crossing

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

EVENTS_DOWN

   

Downward crossing

     

NotGenerated

0

Event not generated

     

Generated

1

Event generated

EVENTS_UP

Address offset: 0x108

Upward crossing

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

EVENTS_UP

   

Upward crossing

     

NotGenerated

0

Event not generated

     

Generated

1

Event generated

EVENTS_CROSS

Address offset: 0x10C

Downward or upward crossing

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

EVENTS_CROSS

   

Downward or upward crossing

     

NotGenerated

0

Event not generated

     

Generated

1

Event generated

SHORTS

Address offset: 0x200

Shortcuts between local events and tasks

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                       E D C B A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

READY_SAMPLE

   

Shortcut between event READY and task SAMPLE

     

Disabled

0

Disable shortcut

     

Enabled

1

Enable shortcut

B RW

READY_STOP

   

Shortcut between event READY and task STOP

     

Disabled

0

Disable shortcut

     

Enabled

1

Enable shortcut

C RW

DOWN_STOP

   

Shortcut between event DOWN and task STOP

     

Disabled

0

Disable shortcut

     

Enabled

1

Enable shortcut

D RW

UP_STOP

   

Shortcut between event UP and task STOP

     

Disabled

0

Disable shortcut

     

Enabled

1

Enable shortcut

E RW

CROSS_STOP

   

Shortcut between event CROSS and task STOP

     

Disabled

0

Disable shortcut

     

Enabled

1

Enable shortcut

INTEN

Address offset: 0x300

Enable or disable interrupt

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                         D C B A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

READY

   

Enable or disable interrupt for event READY

     

Disabled

0

Disable

     

Enabled

1

Enable

B RW

DOWN

   

Enable or disable interrupt for event DOWN

     

Disabled

0

Disable

     

Enabled

1

Enable

C RW

UP

   

Enable or disable interrupt for event UP

     

Disabled

0

Disable

     

Enabled

1

Enable

D RW

CROSS

   

Enable or disable interrupt for event CROSS

     

Disabled

0

Disable

     

Enabled

1

Enable

INTENSET

Address offset: 0x304

Enable interrupt

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                         D C B A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

READY

   

Write '1' to enable interrupt for event READY

     

Set

1

Enable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

B RW

DOWN

   

Write '1' to enable interrupt for event DOWN

     

Set

1

Enable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

C RW

UP

   

Write '1' to enable interrupt for event UP

     

Set

1

Enable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

D RW

CROSS

   

Write '1' to enable interrupt for event CROSS

     

Set

1

Enable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

INTENCLR

Address offset: 0x308

Disable interrupt

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                         D C B A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

READY

   

Write '1' to disable interrupt for event READY

     

Clear

1

Disable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

B RW

DOWN

   

Write '1' to disable interrupt for event DOWN

     

Clear

1

Disable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

C RW

UP

   

Write '1' to disable interrupt for event UP

     

Clear

1

Disable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

D RW

CROSS

   

Write '1' to disable interrupt for event CROSS

     

Clear

1

Disable

     

Disabled

0

Read: Disabled

     

Enabled

1

Read: Enabled

RESULT

Address offset: 0x400

Compare result

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A R

RESULT

   

Result of last compare. Decision point SAMPLE task.

     

Below

0

Input voltage is below the threshold (VIN+ < VIN-)

     

Above

1

Input voltage is above the threshold (VIN+ > VIN-)

ENABLE

Address offset: 0x500

COMP enable

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                             A A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

ENABLE

   

Enable or disable COMP

     

Disabled

0

Disable

     

Enabled

2

Enable

PSEL

Address offset: 0x504

Pin select

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                           A A A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

PSEL

   

Analog pin select

     

AnalogInput0

0

AIN0 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput1

1

AIN1 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput2

2

AIN2 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput3

3

AIN3 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput4

4

AIN4 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput5

5

AIN5 selected as analog input

     

AnalogInput6

6

AIN6 selected as analog input

     

VddDiv2

7

VDD/2 selected as analog input

REFSEL

Address offset: 0x508

Reference source select for single-ended mode

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                           A A A
Reset 0x00000004 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

REFSEL

   

Reference select

     

Int1V2

0

VREF = internal 1.2 V reference (VDD >= 1.7 V)

     

Int1V8

1

VREF = internal 1.8 V reference (VDD >= VREF + 0.2 V)

     

Int2V4

2

VREF = internal 2.4 V reference (VDD >= VREF + 0.2 V)

     

VDD

4

VREF = VDD

     

ARef

5

VREF = AREF (VDD >= VREF >= AREFMIN)

EXTREFSEL

Address offset: 0x50C

External reference select

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                           A A A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

EXTREFSEL

   

External analog reference select

     

AnalogReference0

0

Use AIN0 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference1

1

Use AIN1 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference2

2

Use AIN2 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference3

3

Use AIN3 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference4

4

Use AIN4 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference5

5

Use AIN5 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference6

6

Use AIN6 as external analog reference

     

AnalogReference7

7

Use AIN7 as external analog reference

TH

Address offset: 0x530

Threshold configuration for hysteresis unit

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                     B B B B B B     A A A A A A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

THDOWN

 

[63:0]

VDOWN = (THDOWN+1)/64*VREF

B RW

THUP

 

[63:0]

VUP = (THUP+1)/64*VREF

MODE

Address offset: 0x534

Mode configuration

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                               B             A A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

SP

   

Speed and power modes

     

Low

0

Low-power mode

     

Normal

1

Normal mode

     

High

2

High-speed mode

B RW

MAIN

   

Main operation modes

     

SE

0

Single-ended mode

     

Diff

1

Differential mode

HYST

Address offset: 0x538

Comparator hysteresis enable

Bit number 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
ID                                                               A
Reset 0x00000000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ID Access Field Value ID Value Description
A RW

HYST

   

Comparator hysteresis

     

NoHyst

0

Comparator hysteresis disabled

     

Hyst50mV

1

Comparator hysteresis enabled

Electrical specification

COMP Electrical Specification

Symbol Description Min. Typ. Max. Units
tPROPDLY,LP

Propagation delay, low-power modea

0.6 µS
tPROPDLY,N

Propagation delay, normal modea

0.2 µS
tPROPDLY,HS

Propagation delay, high-speed modea

0.1 µS
VDIFFHYST

Optional hysteresis applied to differential input

30 mV
VVDD-VREF

Required difference between VDD and a selected VREF, VDD > VREF

0.3 V
tINT_REF,START

Startup time for the internal bandgap reference

50 80 µS
EINT_REF

Internal bandgap reference error

-3 3 %
VINPUTOFFSET

Input offset

-10 10 mV
tCOMP,START

Startup time for the comparator core

3 µS
a Propagation delay is with 10 mV overdrive.