Top 10 processors

Chipmakers of microprocessors (MPUs), microcontrollers (MPUs) and system-on-chips (SoCs) face the same challenges. They need to develop lower-power processors that deliver the right combination of advanced security features and do it cost-effectively in a smaller package without compromising performance.

Processor features and functionality are constantly changing as new applications emerge and new technologies are adopted. Every market segment has its own requirements. For example, although power efficiency is a growing requirement across applications, it is particularly important in edge devices, wearables and other mobile devices. These processors often feature several low-power features and multiple low-power modes to improve power efficiency.

In automotive, connected cars, autonomous driving and new infotainment features, along with more sensors and sensor fusion, call for more processing power, along with better efficiency. These applications also demand the highest levels of advanced security.

For wireless connectivity, the need for multiprotocol support is on the rise, along with Bluetooth Low Energy (LE). Automakers, for example, are increasingly using wireless technology to reduce the cost and weight of cabling. Another contributing factor is in-vehicle communications.

Chipmakers are also adding AI and machine-learning (ML) capabilities and running these tasks at much lower power. Depending on the application, AI/ML can improve efficiency, productivity and safety and enable real-time decision-making. In the industrial sector, for example, growing applications include predictive maintenance at the edge and advanced machine vision.

In addition, nearly all chipmakers focus on reducing design complexity. They typically approach the challenge in two ways: through higher integration and simpler development tools.

Here is a sampling of the latest processors, including MCUs, MPUs and SoCs, introduced over the past year, that address some of these trends.

Automotive MCUs

Many new automotive MCUs focus on the biggest challenges in automotive design today: security, power consumption and connectivity. One example is onsemi’s NCV-RSL15, an ultra-low–power automotive-grade wireless MCU with Bluetooth LE connectivity that tackles all three challenges. Applications include vehicle access, tire-monitoring systems and seat-belt detection.

Targeting connected, smart automotive applications, the NCV-RSL15 is based on the Arm Cortex−M33 processor with Bluetooth LE 5.2 connectivity. The MCU features 512-kB flash memory and 80-kB RAM (64-kB user RAM and 16 kB RAM for baseband). It offers several power modes to reduce power consumption.

The MCU addresses security concerns resulting from more sensors and the potential for more possible attack vectors to protect against unauthorized wireless access to the vehicle’s central body computer or central processing unit. It uses the latest in embedded security with the Arm CryptoCell featuring hardware-based root-of-trust secure boot, many user-accessible hardware-accelerated cryptographic algorithms and firmware-over-the-air capabilities.

The NCV-RSL15, housed in a QFNW40 package, addresses power consumption and a growing requirement for a 10-year battery lifetime. It features a proprietary smart-sense power mode and is designed to use as little power as possible. A side benefit of conserving more battery is increased product longevity, onsemi said.

A software development kit with a library of sample code is available. The sample applications demonstrate the hardware capabilities to enable security, acquire sensor data, configure the built-in power management and use the Bluetooth LE features.

Another automotive MCU is Infineon Technologies AG’s TRAVEO T2G cluster family with a new graphics engine. This chip delivers high performance for automotive graphics applications with a new smart rendering technology. The graphics engine minimizes the memory required for graphics processing by a factor of 3 to 5 for lower power consumption and lower costs.

With a dedicated graphics accelerator, the TRAVEO T2G cluster MCU family enables cluster, infotainment and cockpit systems with MPU performance at an MCU cost, according to the company. The optimized 2.5D graphics engine enables the MCUs to support full virtual instrument clusters with a high resolution of up to 1,920 × 1,080, Infineon said.

The small footprint of the automotive MCUs also makes them easier to integrate while reducing BOM costs, the company said. This makes them suited for a variety of applications, including advanced smart mobility instrument cluster and heads-up display systems for automobiles, motorcycles and off-highway mobility, as well as for industrial and medical applications.

Based on up to two Arm Cortex-M7 cores with up to 320 MHz, the TRAVEO T2G cluster MCU family enables ASIL-B/SIL-2 safety performance. The MCU family features up to 6 MB of flash and up to 4 MB of internal VRAM or 1-GB LPPDR4 VRAM. Security features include an EVITA high-level hardware security module (HSM) that provides advanced security with hardware encryption accelerators and enhanced hardware protection with a dedicated Arm Cortex-M0+.

The MCUs are available in a wide range of packages, ranging from 500-pin BGA (via 216-pin TEQFP) to 144-pin LQFP. CAN-FD, LIN, Gigabit Ethernet and CXPI are available as embedded peripherals. Other features include a JPEG decoder, video input and output and two serial memory interfaces (SPI or xSPI). HMI tools are available from partners to support key hardware features.

Bluetooth and multiprotocol chips

Focused on simplifying Bluetooth connectivity is the STM32WB09 wireless MCU from STMicroelectronics. The chipmaker is simplifying the design of smart Bluetooth devices with a new wireless MCU and turnkey module, though the focus here is on the wireless MCU. These devices are designed to simplify the design of short-range wireless connectivity devices.

The STM32WB09 wireless MCU includes all the processing power and Bluetooth RF technology needed in one chip and is available with a tiny chip-scale package option. It features state-of-the-art radio performance with up to –104-dBm sensitivity and 8-dBm output power.

The wireless MCU is built on the Arm Cortex-M0+ single-core architecture with “generous” on-chip memory. The device offers 512 kB of flash memory and 64 kB of RAM. It also includes a range of security features, including secure bootloader, true random-number generator, hardware encryption, hardware public key accelerator and cryptographic algorithms.

The peripherals and memory are tailored for applications like wireless sensing, connected wearables and remote control. The SoC can also be used for warehouse inventory management systems, smart meters, access controls and medical devices like disposable sensors. ST offers an extensive toolbox of wireless design hardware and software development tools.

The all-in-one STM32WB1MMC wireless module makes wireless connectivity easier with a certified wireless MCU pre-integrated with external components needed for the radio system, as well as the latest Bluetooth software. Also introduced is the B-WB1M-WPAN1 evaluation board for building prototypes with the STM32WB1MMC MCU module.

Nordic Semiconductor recently upgraded its Bluetooth LE SoC family with an addition to its nRF54 Series for the next generation of wireless IoT products in medical/healthcare, smart-home, industrial IoT, VR/AR, PC accessories, remote controllers and gaming controller applications. The new nRF54L15 is the first Bluetooth LE SoC in the nRF54L Series, delivering increased processing power and efficiency, more memory and lower power consumption.

The nRF54L15 SoC features an Arm Cortex-M33 processor running at 128 MHz, providing twice the processing power of the nRF52840 SoC while reducing power consumption. It is supported by 1.5 MB of nonvolatile memory and 256 KB of RAM for concurrent running of multiple protocols.

The ultra-low–power Bluetooth 5.4 SoC includes a new multiprotocol radio and advanced security features in a compact package.

Security is addressed with advanced hardware and software security designed for PSA Certified Level 3, the highest in the PSA Certified IoT security standard. Security features include secure boot, secure firmware update and secure storage, as well as protection against physical attacks thanks to integrated tamper sensors and cryptographic accelerators hardened against side-channel attacks.

The SoC’s new long-range multiprotocol radio provides up to 8-dBm TX power (with 1-dB increments) and –98-dBm RX sensitivity for 1-Mbits/s Bluetooth LE. In addition, the radio features a new 4-Mbits/s data-rate option for 2.4-GHz proprietary protocols, offering improved throughput, efficiency and latency, Nordic said. It supports all Bluetooth 5.4 features, Bluetooth Mesh and future Bluetooth spec updates, as well as Thread and Matter.

Compared with the nRF52 series, the radio power consumption of the nRF54L15 offers significant improvements in TX and RX, offering energy savings and allowing for smaller batteries or extended battery life. In addition, a new global real-time clock peripheral that can wake up the SoC from its deepest-sleep mode also delivers greater energy savings, eliminates the need for an external RTC and reduces power consumption when applications sleep for long durations. Other new peripherals include a 14-bit ADC and a software-defined peripheral enabled by a RISC-V coprocessor.

The nRF54L15 is available in a 6 × 6-mm QFN package with 31 GPIOs, as well as in an ultra-compact, 2.4 × 2.2-mm WLCSP with 32 GPIOs (300-µm pitch) and 14 GPIOs (350-µm pitch). These WLCSPs are more than 50% smaller than the nRF52840 WLCSP, making them suitable for designs with strict size constraints.

Silicon Labs launched the FG28 dual-band SoC for long-range networks and protocols like Amazon Sidewalk, Wi-SUN and other proprietary protocols. The wireless SoC includes radios for sub-gigahertz and 2.4-GHz Bluetooth LE, a built-in AI/ML accelerator for ML inference and the company’s Secure Vault technology.

Silicon Labs claimed the FG28 is the industry’s first integrated AI/ML accelerator in a sub-gigahertz SoC. This enables ML inference at the edge for a range of applications, including predictive maintenance warnings and monitoring soil conditions, the company said.

The new SoC addresses a variety of key requirements for developing and deploying low-power wide-area networks. For example, Bluetooth enables easy deployment of new devices on the network, while sub-gigahertz supports device communications over one mile for new edge applications, such as neighborhood networks like Amazon Sidewalk, smart cities or smart agriculture.

Bluetooth enables easier device deployment, but it also allows operators to connect to the device locally for functions like diagnostics and data downloads. The sub-gigahertz connectivity, using networks like Wi-SUN, allows the FG28 to be used as the battery-operated end node in smart cities for applications like livestock trackers and health monitors, the company said.

Key features include a 32-bit 78-MHz Arm Cortex-M33 with digital-signal processor (DSP) instruction and floating-point unit, an integrated AI/ML hardware accelerator, and 1,024 kB of flash storage and 256 kB of RAM to meet a range of protocols and technology stacks. The device also offers a variety of MCU peripherals, including analog-to-digital converters, digital-to-analog converters, analog comparators, time counter, DMA controller, watchdog timer and up to 49 GPIOs.

The SoC’s integrated Secure Vault suite of security features allows designers to choose the level of security they need for the applications. The technology protects against scalable local and remote software attacks, as well as local hardware attacks. Key features include Arm TrustZone, secure key management, secure boot, anti-rollback prevention, anti-tamper, secure attestation, differential power-analysis countermeasures, secure debug, secure link and true random-number generator.

More security

Addressing security challenges is Microchip Technology Inc.’s PIC32CZ CA 32-bit MCUs with an embedded HSM that makes it easier to integrate security into industrial and consumer applications. The 32-bit MCUs feature a 300-MHz Arm Cortex-M7 processor and a wide range of connectivity and flash memory options, targeting industrial and consumer applications.

The PIC32CZ CA devices include the PIC32CZ CA90 with an integrated HSM and the PIC32CZ CA80 without the integrated HSM. The HSM is a monolithic solution that provides advanced security, operating as a secure subsystem with a separate MCU on board. The MCU runs firmware and security features including hardware secure boot, key storage, cryptographic acceleration and true random-number generator.

When additional security is necessary, factory provisioning is available on the PIC32CZ CA90 so that the devices are ready to be deployed. Microchip’s Trust Platform Development Suite, an in-house secure provisioning tool, enables a secure supply chain channel at scale or in low-volume production.

The PIC32CZ CA MCUs are configurable using connectivity options like USART/UART, I²C, SPI, CAN FD, high-speed USB and Gigabit Ethernet. The Ethernet option includes Audio Video Bridging (AVB) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP) based on the IEEE 1588 standard. Users can expand functionality through Arduino Uno R3, Mikroe Bus or Xplained Pro compatible expansion boards. The devices are scalable with 2, 4 or 8 MB of on-board flash, 1 MB of SRAM and error-correction code (ECC) memory to mitigate data corruption.

Delivering faster and more secure NFC transactions, NXP Semiconductors has launched its PN7642, a single-chip connected MCU that integrates an Arm Cortex-M33, an NFC reader and SESIP-Level 2 security. Target applications include physical access solutions, consumables authentication, secure identity verification and other NFC use cases.

NXP said the PN7642 makes it easier to integrate NFC technology into new or existing secure authentication solutions by combining a customizable MCU with an NFC Forum–certified NFC solution and a complete security toolbox.

The PN7642 consists of a high-performance NFC Forum–certified NFC reader with 2-W output power, supporting read/write and card emulation modes, and an integrated customizable Arm Cortex-M33 MCU that includes 180-kB flash, 20-kB RAM and a range of controller and host interfaces. For security, the connected MCU includes SESIP-Level 2 certification, a complete security toolbox, crypto accelerators and secure key storage, all supported by software.

Other features include a power supply from 2.4 V to 5.5 V, support for ECP 2.0 and ultra-low–power card detection (22-µA type). The PN7642 also integrates a DC/DC that allows for a single 3.3-V supply with maximum transmit power.

AI/ML for industrial segments

Late last year, Renesas Electronics Corp. claimed the industry’s most powerful MCUs and the first based on the Arm Cortex-M85 processor, with Arm Helium technology for enhanced AI/ML performance, delivering breakthrough performance of over 3,000 CoreMark points. The first devices released in the RA8M1 Group MCUs can be used in a range of compute-intensive applications.

The RA8 Series MCUs feature the Arm Helium technology and a vector extension for the Armv8-M architecture that increases performance by 4× for DSP and ML implementations versus MCUs based on the Arm Cortex-M7 processor. The Helium will make it easier to implement natural-language processing in voice AI and predictive maintenance applications in edge and endpoint devices, Renesas said.

The MCUs also deliver a 30% increase in scalar performance compared with the Cortex-M7. This enables designers to potentially eliminate additional DSPs in their system designs for some applications.

The RA8 series is packed with security features, including Arm TrustZone technology and Renesas’s advanced Security IP (RSIP-E51A) that provides cryptographic accelerators and supports a true secure boot. Other advanced security features include immutable storage for a strong hardware root of trust, Octal SPI with decryption on the fly, secure authenticated debug, secure factory programming and tamper protection.

Renesas said the Armv8.1-M architecture introduces the Pointer Authentication and Branch Target Identification (PACBTI) security extension that provides mitigation for software attacks targeting memory safety violations and memory corruptions.

With a lower operating voltage of 1.68–3.6 V, the RA8 Series devices deliver new low-power features and multiple low-power modes to improve power efficiency and help designers meet regulatory requirements. Key features include independent power domains, fast wakeup time and low typical active and standby currents to lower overall system power. In addition, the Arm Cortex-M85 core performs various DSP/ML tasks at much lower power, Renesas said.

The general-purpose RA8M1 Group MCUs can be used in a range of applications in industrial automation, home appliances, smart home, consumer, building/home automation, medical and AI in applications like fingerprint scanners, thermostats, PLC, smart meters and home hubs. They are supported by Renesas’s Flexible Software Package (FSP) for faster application development and an RA8M1 Group Evaluation Kit.

Addressing ML at the edge is the new family of PSoC Edge MCUs from Infineon Technologies. The new power-efficient PSoC Edge is a family of Arm Cortex–based MCUs that enable next-generation responsive compute and control applications and feature hardware-assisted ML acceleration. It also enables easy migration of applications within the PSoC family and an upgrade path for existing designs.

The PSoC Edge MCU family features ML-enhanced sensing, low power, secure and advanced HMI performance, which is coupled with privacy and safety protection, provided via Infineon’s Edge Protect technologies. Applications include IoT and industrial segments like smart-home, security systems, wearables, robotics and HMI applications.

In addition to offering scalable power and performance, extensive HMI capabilities and security, the PSoC MCUs are based on the high-performance Arm Cortex-M55, including Helium DSP support paired with Arm Ethos-U55 and Cortex-M33. This is combined with Infineon’s ultra-low–power NNLite hardware accelerator that accelerates neural networks used in ML and AI.

Other features include on-chip memories (nonvolatile RRAM and high speed, secured external memory support), and software reuse and portability. Development support is provided via Infineon’s ModusToolbox and Imagimob Studio AI solution, an edge AI development platform.

STMicroelectronics released the second generation of its STM32 MPUs last year with a new architecture, offering increased performance and security for Industry 4.0 and edge AI applications. The new STM32MP2 edge AI MPUs are based on the same ecosystem, offering advanced multimedia features, graphics processing, digital connectivity and advanced security in hardware. They come with SESIP Level 3 certification.

The first product line in this new series of edge AI–powered MPUs is the STM32MP25. The series is available with single or dual 64-bit Arm Cortex-A35 cores running efficiently at 1.5 GHz, with a 400-MHz Cortex-M33 embedded core that handles real-time processing. A dedicated neural processing unit with up to 1.35 tera operations per second (TOPs) is optimized for edge AI acceleration in applications like advanced machine vision and predictive maintenance. The MPUs also support 32-bit DDR4 and LPDDR4 memories.

For connectivity, the STM32MP25 family features gigabit time-sensitive networking (TSN) support and a two-port Gigabit Ethernet TSN switch, with PCIe, USB 3.0 and CAN-FD peripherals. These features support real-time industrial applications, data concentrators and gateways, and communication equipment.

The STM32MP25 also features a 3D graphics processing unit with 1080p resolution for graphics and video capabilities. A 1080p encoder/decoder and multiple display connections including LVDS, four-lane MIPI DSI and a MIPI CSI-2 camera interface simplify the connection of displays and digital cameras.

Advanced security includes Arm’s TrustZone architecture and resource isolation framework. Other security features include secure key storage, secure boot, a unique device ID in one-time–programmable memory, hardware cryptographic engines and on-the-fly DDR encryption/decryption.

The STM32MPU ecosystem includes the OpenSTLinux distribution with the complete AI framework (X-Linux-AI) and the STM32Cube development tools. The STM32Cube firmware will run bare metal or RTOS on the Cortex-M33 embedded core. A selection of package options is available, including a 0.8-mm–pitch chip-scale package (TFBGA).