T Flip-Flop: Propagation Delay Accumulation in 3-Stage Ripple Counter
A 3-stage asynchronous ripple counter uses negative-edge-triggered T flip-flops with all T inputs tied HIGH to toggle on every clock edge.
Four signals are shown: CLK (input clock), Q0 (stage 0 output), Q1 (stage 1 output), and Q2 (stage 2 output). Each flip-flop has a clock-to-Q propagation delay of exactly 5 time steps. Q0 is clocked by CLK, Q1 is clocked by Q0, and Q2 is clocked by Q1. All outputs are initially 1.
Trace the outputs Q0, Q1, and Q2 across all 20 time steps to demonstrate how propagation delay accumulates.
Constraints
- Each flip-flop toggles only on the HIGH-to-LOW transition (negative edge) of its specific driving signal.
- A stage does not begin its propagation delay until its driving signal has physically transitioned.
- The maximum safe clock frequency for an asynchronous ripple counter is limited by the cumulative propagation delay of all stages.
Topics
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