MCU crystal capacitor selection

A section on crystal oscillator characteristics is on page 1255 of the AT32UC3C series datasheet (complete as opposed to summary).

Excerpt from datasheet

The value of CLEXT is based on the formula:

$$2(C_L - C_I) - C_{PCB}$$

The 20MHz crystal you selected, for example, has a 10pF load capacitance (\$C_L\$), denoted by the "Q" near the end of its part number (See the part numbering reference). The internal equivalent load capacitance (\$C_I\$) is 1.7 pF (per page 1256 of the AT32UC3C datasheet). This leaves just the PCB (stray) capacitance (\$C_{PCB}\$) to be determined. That can get complicated, so we'll use a "rule of thumb" of 5pF.

$$2(10 - 1.7) - 5 = 11.6pF$$

For more information see:

  • Atmel: Best Practices for PCB layout of oscillators
  • Freescale: Microcontroller Oscillator Circuit Design Considerations