STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) has achieved a breakthrough for microcontrollers based on the ARM Cortex-M series of processor cores by announcing the industry's first devices featuring embedded Flash at 90nm process technology.
Few companies have built microcontrollers of any architecture at this process node, but ST has leveraged existing investment in 90nm embedded Flash technology for its secure and automotive microcontrollers to realize performance and cost advantages for its STM32 MCUs using the 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 core. A limited number of customers will receive samples in the fourth quarter of 2009, followed by full production availability in 2010. These MCUs will deliver faster operation, increased peripheral integration, and extra savings in power consumption, as well as providing among the highest on-chip SRAM and non-volatile memory densities available.
The STM32 family already offers the largest range of ARM Cortex-M3 microcontrollers on the market. The core provides advanced processing capabilities, excellent real-time performance, and best-in-class code density. Building on this, STM32 devices add superior and innovative peripherals as well as features such as multiple low-power modes with fast wake-up for optimum performance and efficiency. Developers benefit from pin-to-pin, software and peripherals compatibility across all microcontroller variants, enabling fast and flexible development.
"Since its launch in 2007, the STM32 has led the convergence of 16- and 32-bit applications and gained tremendous success with many design wins in multiple market segments," said Jim Nicholas, General Manager of ST's Microcontroller Division. "Continuous innovation and improvement has built the industry's broadest portfolio of Cortex-M3 based devices, and taking the STM32 to 90nm will enable more feature-rich applications reaching higher performance standards and even greater power efficiency."
In all, ST now has more than 70 STM32 devices in full production, offering a vast choice of performance, features and packages through its Access Line, USB Access Line, Performance Line and Connectivity Line devices, the STM32W wireless-enabled series announced earlier in 2009, and the forthcoming STM32L series featuring ST's ultra-low-power technology.