"It’s just an inverter, Elias," his partner, Kael, scoffed, leaning against the damp hab-unit wall. "It flips a signal. It doesn't make one."

Total period T = tch + tdis Frequency f = 1 / T

To build an oscillator with the 74HC14 Hex Schmitt-trigger Inverter, you create a relaxation circuit where a capacitor charges and discharges through a resistor. Because the 74HC14 has , it waits for the capacitor to reach a high threshold ( VT+cap V sub cap T plus end-sub ) before switching its output low, and a low threshold ( VT−cap V sub cap T minus end-sub ) before switching high again. Quick Calculator Formula For most practical 74HC14 designs at 5V, the frequency ( ) can be approximated with:

The 74HC14 is a Hex Inverter with Schmitt Trigger inputs. This hysteresis feature makes it exceptionally easy to build a stable relaxation oscillator using only one gate, one resistor, and one capacitor.