External Interrupts
The external sources can be programmed to be level-activated or transition-activated by setting or clearing bit IT1 or IT0 in Register TCON.
If ITx = 0, external interrupt x is triggered by a detected low at the INTx pin.
If ITx = 1, external interrupt x is edge-triggered.In this mode if successive samples of the INTx pin show a high in one cycle and a low in the next cycle ,interrupt requeatflag IEx in TCON is set. Flag bit IEx then requests the interrupt.
Since the external interrupt pins are sampled once each machine cycle,an input high or low should hold for at least 12 oscillator periods to ensure sampling. If the external interrupt is transition-activated,the external source has to hold the request pin high for at least one machine cycle, and then hold it low for at least one machine cycle to ensure that the transition is seen so that interrupt request flag IEx will be set. IEx will be automatically cleared by the CPU when the service
routine is called.
If the external interrupt is level-activated,the external source has to hold the request active until the requested interrupt is actually generated.Then it has to deactivate the request before the interrupt service routine is completed, or else another interrupt will be generated.