The current trend, says ABI research analyst John Marino, is a gradual convergence between "traditional" oscillators (XOs, TCXOs, VCXOs, OCXOs) built from a number of discrete components, and semiconductor-based devices (IC clocks, PLL-based zero delay clock drivers, buffers and synthesizers). “There is an increasing push to integrate all the device's functions onto a single chip.”

The crystal business is not going to go away, according to Marino, but he said the VCXOs and TCXOs, and to a lesser extent the XOs, are growing at slower rates. The study forecasts that over the next five years, silicon timing device markets will grow at double, or more than double, the rate of the traditional oscillator markets.

Marino says that semiconductor makers will look at acquiring frequency control-based companies, and noted that some of the larger frequency control companies are partnering with semiconductor makers, “so when they go to market, they can offer the solution that fits the customer's needs, whether it be traditional or semiconductor-based.”