Pulse generators are useful in a number of semiconductor integrated circuit devices to control time delays between operations or to control the length of an operation or a phase of that operation. There are many applications for pulse generators that generate output pulses that are synchronized to a reference signal. Typical applications for such circuits include digital data communications systems and digital data recording systems. Many digital communications systems, e.g. satellite communications systems, packet radio systems, local area network (LAN) systems, transmit digital data in discrete "packets" or "bursts" that are serially arranged in groups to form transmission frames. Use of such frames allows for utilization of conventional time division multiple access (TDMA) techniques to transmit the bursts between users of the communications system. In consumer electronics such as digital video tape recorders and digital audio tape recorders, that record data using interleaving techniques, to facilitate de-interleaving of the recorded data, these recorders generate, during playback, timing synchronization pulses from the recorded data. As with the communications system, the synchronization pulses indicate the beginning of each interleaved data set. Pulse generators are used in remote controls for television and other consumer electronic products. Unique pulse signals are electrically generated within a hand held remote control unit. These pulses are remotely communicated to the electronic equipment to be controlled by an infra-red beam. Unique infra-red pulse signals are generated for various specific control functions. The television or other equipment receiving the pulses recognizes the function to be performed by each and executes the requested function. In the field of optics, pulse generators are commonly used to drive pockels cells which are widely known in the art as electro-optic light modulators which modify light wave polarization in response to voltages. In response to very high voltage short duration pulses, Pockels cells can act like switches. Such switches have significant application to laser based systems and can be used in laser machining tools. Acoustic pulse generators have been used in underwater environments to map underwater geological structures and to locate man-made structures, such as submarines and underwater mines.

Semiconductor memory devices are rapidly-accessible memory devices. Semiconductor devices such as memory devices are tested during manufacture by applying pulses to a terminal of a selected memory device while data is being written to or read from the memory device. In a semiconductor memory device, the time required for storing and retrieving information generally is independent of the physical location of the information within the memory device. Timing of operations within a memory device is often regulated by a timing pulse or other control signal generated by a pulse generator. Timing pulses having durations that are relatively stable across a wide range of operating conditions are preferred. Integrated circuit memories, such as static random access memories (SRAMs) require increasingly short access times. Synchronous random access memory is designed to operate in a synchronous memory system. All input and output signals, with the exception of a clock enable signal during power down and self refresh modes, are synchronized to an active edge of a system clock. SRAMs are often used in the portion of a processing system where speed is very important, such as in a cache. Address transition detection (ATD) is one method that has been used to decrease access times. ATD is generally used to provide data line precharge and equalization signals in an integrated circuit memory. In a memory using ATD, an address transition detector provides a pulse in response to an address change. Synchronous memories have a write pulse generator that may be used, along with other signals, to control the writing operations of the memory. The write pulse generator can provide discreet increments of internal write pulses that have a variable width. The variable width is controlled by optioning a number of delay elements in and out of a one shot pulse generator. To operate a DRAM at very fast speeds, pulses generated by the pulse generator must be extremely short.