STMicroelectronics Releases Latest 8-bit Microcontroller Platform

(Product News, 26 Feb 2008)

STMicroelectronics has unveiled details of a new 8-bit microcontroller platform designed to offer outstanding levels of performance and cost-effectiveness in a wide range of applications. Implemented around a high-performance 8-bit core and a state-of-the-art set of peripherals, the STM8 platform will be manufactured using an ST-proprietary 130nm embedded non-volatile memory technology.

The STM8 platform will be the foundation for a number of distinct product families each optimized for specific application areas, including automotive, industrial, low voltage and battery-operated applications, as well as application-specific standard products. Each STM8 product family will deliver to customers the principal advantages of the new platform, including higher performance, increased robustness, short application design cycles, application design longevity and low total system cost.

In performance, the STM8 leverages a Harvard architecture with 16-bit index registers and stack pointer, a 16MB linear address space, advanced addressing modes and other features designed to optimally support C-programming to deliver leading-edge CPU performance in both speed and code density. The core reaches an average of 1.6 cycles per instruction with 20MIPS of peak performance at 24MHz using a three-stage pipeline.

The technology has been chosen with the aim of reducing system costs through a high integration level, the ability to embed non-volatile data memory and to provide excellent analog performance in a wide voltage range from 1.65V to 5.5V. The STM8 platform offers real embedded EEPROM with a performance in endurance and retention comparable to those of external components, making complex Flash-based emulation strategies obsolete. The available on-chip Flash program memory sizes will range up to 256KB. The technology options allow high-speed operation as well as drastically reduced power consumption. All these technological advantages will be available in automotive grade products that operate at temperatures of up to 145°C.

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