Patent ID: 7408422

Claim:
An electronic circuit element suitable for having two capacitance values selected by a control signal, the electronic circuit element comprising: a non-inverting transmission link having an input that receives the control signal; an inverter having an input that receives the control signal, wherein the non-inverting transmission link and the inverter transmit first and second intermediate signals, respectively, the intermediate signals having values associated with distinct first and second control states; a first electronic component having an input electrically coupled to the non-inverting transmission link to receive the first intermediate signal, the first electronic component having a first variable capacitance between two outputs of the first electronic component, the first variable capacitance varying as a function of the first intermediate signal, the first variable capacitance having a first non-zero capacitance value in response to the first control state of the first intermediate signal and having a second non-zero capacitance value in response to the second control state of the first intermediate signal; a second electronic component having an input electrically coupled to a transmission link to receive the second intermediate signal produced by the inverter, the second electronic component having a second variable capacitance between two outputs of the second electronic component, the second variable capacitance varying as a function of the second intermediate signal, the second variable capacitance having a first non-zero capacitance value in response to the first control state of the second intermediate signal and having a second non-zero capacitance value in response to the second control state of the second intermediate signal, wherein the first and second variable capacitances are connected in parallel; and outputs coupled to exhibit an output capacitance substantially equivalent to a sum of the first non-zero capacitance values of the first and second variable capacitances during the first control state, the output capacitance being substantially equivalent to a sum of the second non-zero capacitance values of the first and second variable capacitances during the second control state, the first and second variable capacitances being differentiated by a configuration parameter so that the first non-zero capacitance value of the first electronic component is different from the second non-zero capacitance value of the second electronic component.