STMicroelectronics Releases Development Ecosystem and Adds New Devices in Low-Power STM32L4 Microcontroller Series

STMicroelectronics has introduced the development ecosystem for its latest low-power, high-performance STM32L4 microcontrollers (MCU) and expanded the series with five new product lines comprising a range of package and memory-density options.

The expanded STM32L4 ecosystem builds on ST’s free and easy-to-use STM32Cube platform. This comprises the STM32CubeMX initialization-code generator and configurator with easy-to-use power estimation for ultra-low-power design, and the STM32CubeL4 package that contains middleware components, Nucleo-32 Board-Support Package (BSP), Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL), and Low-Layer APIs (LLAPIs). For a quick start to new projects, the slim-form-factorNUCLEO-L432KC board – the first Nucleo-32 board to integrate an MCU in the tiny QFN32 package – includes an STM32L432KCU6 device (UFQFPN32) and provides direct access to ARM^® mbed™ online tools. Its Arduino Nano pin layout simplifies function extensions, and the integrated ST-Link debugger/programmer supports mass storage and allows probe-free debugging.

Five new STM32L43x and STM32L44x MCU product lines comprise variants with versatile combinations of an integrated USB controller, an LCD controller, and cryptography for security-conscious applications. Up to 256KByte of Flash and low-pin-count-package choices make them ideal for cost-sensitive applications. The new devices also offer rich digital peripherals including a True Random-Number Generator (TRNG) and smart analog features such as a 12-bit 5Msample/s ADC, internal voltage reference, and ultra-low-power comparators.

All devices deliver the advantages of ST’s innovative low-power technology, which includes FlexPowerControl (FPC) with features such as separate supply-voltage domains for gating power individually to analog peripherals, USB circuits, and I/Os. Batch-Acquisition Mode (BAM) enables energy-efficient data capture and seven reduced-power modes with further sub-modes maximize energy savings in a wide range of operating conditions.

ST’s low-power technologies, combined with the performance of the 32-bit ARM Cortex^®-M4F core, ensure high efficiency according to EEMBC™ ULPBench™ tests. The STM32L433 is certified at 177 ULPMark™-CP^[1] at 3.0V, tested without the aid of a step-down converter. Aided by ST’s innovative ART Accelerator™, outright performance is also high at 273 CoreMark^®.

The new devices are available immediately, in small-form-factor packages from 5mm x 5mm QFN-32 to 14mm x 14mm LQFP-100, including 3.14mm x 3.13mm WLCSP. Prices start from $2.045 for the STM32L431KBU6 with 128KByte Flash and 64KByte SRAM in QFN-32, for orders of 10,000 pieces.

^[1] ULPMark-CP: microcontroller efficiency score, calculated as (1000/median energy per second for 10 ULPBench cycles). A larger number implies better efficiency.