Patent ID: 7977980

Claim:
A time-to-amplitude component having an integrated designed configured to measure a time difference between a start signal and a stop signal, wherein the time difference is converted into an analog voltage signal, the component comprising: a first time-to-amplitude converter including: a delay chain including a plurality of delay elements, each delay element having an associated delay time; a resistor network including a respective resistor for each of the delay elements; a capacitor coupled to the respective resistors and configured to be chargeable via the resistor network; and a respective driver for each of the delay elements, wherein each of the delay elements is coupled to the respective resistor via the respective driver, and a control device having a start input and a stop input and being coupled to the delay chain and the respective drivers; and a stabilizing device including a control circuit for generating a regulated control voltage and configured to stabilize a characteristic curve associated with the first time-to-amplitude converter, the first time-to-amplitude converter and the control circuit being integrated and interconnected, and wherein the first time-to-amplitude converter is configured so that: the delay elements of the first time-to-amplitude converter are controlled by the regulated control voltage, a run signal is transmitted through the delay chain in response to the start signal at the start input, and the capacitor is continuously charged via the resistor network in response to the run signal so that a capacitor voltage changes according to a propagation time, and the resistor network is electrically separated from the delay chain via the respective drivers so as to terminate a charging of the capacitor in response to the stop signal at the stop input, and the analog voltage signal dependent on the time difference between the start signal and the stop signal is measurable at an output of the capacitor.