Editing Relaxation oscillator (section)

=== Alternative implementation with 555 timer ===

A similar relaxation oscillator can be built with a [[555 timer IC]] (acting in astable mode) that takes the place of the neon bulb above. That is, when a chosen capacitor is charged to a design value, (e.g., 2/3 of the power supply voltage) [[comparator]]s within the 555 timer flip a transistor switch that gradually discharges that capacitor through a chosen resistor (which determine the RC time constant) to ground. At the instant the capacitor falls to a sufficiently low value (e.g., 1/3 of the power supply voltage), the switch flips to let the capacitor charge up again. The popular 555's comparator design permits accurate operation with any supply from 5 to 15 volts or even wider.

Other, non-comparator oscillators may have unwanted timing changes if the supply voltage changes.