Introduction
ARM Cortex processor core is based on ARM RISC processor
architecture version called ARMv7. The assembly language
instruction set and other details of this ARM architecture
is available for download at: http://infocenter.arm.com/help/topic/com.arm.doc.ddi0403c/index.html
. The pdf doc in the above link details full 32 bit instruction
set of ARM Cortex.
The licensable 32 bit ARM processor architecture is widely
popular for its low power consumption as well as lesser
number of transistors/MOSFETS, it take per MIPS, resulting
in smaller silicon semiconductor chip. The ARM processor
architecture is owned by UK based ARM Holdings. More than
40 chip makers have licensed ARM Cortex M cores and offering
microcontroller (MCU) chips with different features.
There are many other proprietary architectures more efficient
than ARM but they are not open source and the software tools
for them are unique, causing steep learning curve. ARM Cortex
is popular for its wide usage and the easy availability
of software and other development tools both for free of
cost as well as paid.
ARM Cortex M series are designed for use in microcontroller
chips. 15% of microcontroller chips in world are estimated
to be ARM core based.
ARM Cortex M is available in 3 versions, they are M0, M3,
and M4.
We provide you here with list MCUs available based on ARM
Cortex M3 and M4 processor architecture.
ARM Cortex-M3 MCUs: The Cortex-M3 processor is the
first ARM processor-based on the ARMv7-M architecture.
Key Features of ARM Cortex-M3: Thumb, Thumb-2 instruction
set, 1-cycle 32-bit hardware multiply, 2-12 cycle 32-bit
hardware divide, saturated match support, Pipeline: 3 stage
with branch speculation, 12 cycle interrupt latency, Performance
efficiency: 2.17 CoreMark/MHz - 1.25 DMIPS/MHz, Memory Protection:
Non-maskable Input (NMI) + 1 to 240 physical interrupts,
Interrupt priority levels: 8 to 256 priority levels
For more details, refer to: http://www.arm.com/products/processors/cortex-m/cortex-m3.php
Parts selection table from key vendors:
Sl No |
Manufacturer Name |
Manufacturer Part Number |
fmax (MHz) |
FLASH (kB) |
RAM (kB) |
1 |
Fujitsu Semiconductor |
MB9AFA31NBGL |
20 |
64 |
12 |
2 |
Toshiba Electronics |
TMPM390FWBFG |
20 |
128 |
8 |
3 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F100ZE |
24 |
512 |
32 |
4 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32L151C6 |
32 |
32 |
10 |
5 |
Energy Micro |
EFM32TG842F32-QFP64 |
32 |
32 |
4 |
6 |
Energy Micro |
EFM32G210F128-QFN32 |
32 |
128 |
16 |
7 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32L152ZD |
32 |
384 |
48 |
8 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F101TB |
36 |
128 |
16 |
9 |
Toshiba Electronics |
TMPM382FWFG |
40 |
128 |
12 |
10 |
Fujitsu Semiconductor |
MB9AF312KPMC |
40 |
160 |
16 |
11 |
Fujitsu Semiconductor |
MB9AFB44NPMC |
40 |
288 |
32 |
12 |
Atmel Corporation |
SAM3N4C |
48 |
256 |
24 |
13 |
Energy Micro |
EFM32LG880F256-QFP100 |
48 |
256 |
32 |
14 |
Energy Micro |
EFM32GG940F512-QFN64 |
48 |
512 |
128 |
15 |
Atmel Corporation |
SAM3S4C |
64 |
256 |
48 |
16 |
Holtek Semiconductor |
HT32F1251B |
72 |
8 |
2 |
17 |
NXP Semiconductors |
LPC1343FHN33 |
72 |
32 |
8 |
18 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F103ZG |
72 |
1024 |
96 |
19 |
Milandr |
MDR32F9Qx |
80 |
128 |
32 |
20 |
Toshiba Electronics |
TMPM369FYXBG |
80 |
256 |
64 |
21 |
Texas Instruments |
TMS470MF06607 |
80 |
640 |
64 |
22 |
Atmel Corporation |
SAM3U4E |
96 |
256 |
50 |
23 |
NXP Semiconductors |
LPC1768FET100 |
100 |
512 |
64 |
24 |
Atmel Corporation |
SAM3S16C |
100 |
1024 |
128 |
25 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F205RB |
120 |
128 |
64 |
26 |
NXP Semiconductors |
LPC1787FBD208 |
120 |
512 |
96 |
27 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F207IG |
120 |
1024 |
128 |
28 |
Toshiba Electronics |
TMPM320C1DFG |
144 |
0 |
1344 |
29 |
Fujitsu Semiconductor |
MB9BF516RPMC |
144 |
544 |
64 |
30 |
NXP Semiconductors |
LPC1850FET256 |
180 |
|
200 |
Sl No |
Manufacturer Part Number |
CAN |
UART |
I²C |
SPI |
SSP |
ADC |
Timers |
1 |
MB9AFA31NBGL |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
TMPM390FWBFG |
0 |
3 |
2 |
|
|
|
10 |
3 |
STM32F100ZE |
|
2 |
2 |
3 |
|
16 |
11 |
4 |
STM32L151C6 |
|
|
2 |
2 |
|
16 |
6 |
5 |
EFM32TG842F32-QFP64 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6 |
EFM32G210F128-QFN32 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7 |
STM32L152ZD |
|
|
2 |
3 |
|
40 |
8 |
8 |
STM32F101TB |
|
|
2 |
1 |
|
10 |
3 |
9 |
TMPM382FWFG |
0 |
3 |
0 |
|
|
|
6 |
10 |
MB9AF312KPMC |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
11 |
MB9AFB44NPMC |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
12 |
SAM3N4C |
0 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
|
16 |
6 |
13 |
EFM32LG880F256-QFP100 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
14 |
EFM32GG940F512-QFN64 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
15 |
SAM3S4C |
0 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
|
16 |
6 |
16 |
HT32F1251B |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
17 |
LPC1343FHN33 |
|
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
8 |
4 |
18 |
STM32F103ZG |
|
2 |
2 |
3 |
|
21 |
14 |
19 |
MDR32F9Qx |
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
20 |
TMPM369FYXBG |
1 |
4 |
2 |
|
|
|
7 |
21 |
TMS470MF06607 |
2 |
|
|
2 |
|
16 |
|
22 |
SAM3U4E |
0 |
5 |
2 |
5 |
|
16 |
3 |
23 |
LPC1768FET100 |
2 |
4 |
|
1 |
2 |
8 |
4 |
24 |
SAM3S16C |
0 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
|
16 |
6 |
25 |
STM32F205RB |
2 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
|
16 |
12 |
26 |
LPC1787FBD208 |
2 |
5 |
|
|
3 |
8 |
4 |
27 |
STM32F207IG |
2 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
|
24 |
12 |
28 |
TMPM320C1DFG |
0 |
4 |
2 |
|
|
|
8 |
29 |
MB9BF516RPMC |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 |
LPC1850FET256 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
|
8 |
4 |
Sl No |
Manufacturer Part Number |
Package |
Temperature |
CPU supply voltage (V) |
1 |
MB9AFA31NBGL |
BGA 112 - 0.8 mm pitch |
|
2.7 to 5.5 |
2 |
TMPM390FWBFG |
LQFP100 |
|
1.7 to 3.6 |
3 |
STM32F100ZE |
LQFP 144 20x20x1.4 |
-40 C to 105 C |
2 to 3.6 |
4 |
STM32L151C6 |
LQFP 48 7x7x1.4; UFQFPN 48 7x7x0.55 |
-40 C to 85 C |
1.65 to 3.6 |
5 |
EFM32TG842F32-QFP64 |
LQFP64 |
-40 C to 85 C |
|
6 |
EFM32G210F128-QFN32 |
QFN32 |
|
|
7 |
STM32L152ZD |
LQFP 144 20x20x1.4 |
-40 C to 85 C |
1.65 to 3.6 |
8 |
STM32F101TB |
VFQFPN 36 6x6x1-0 |
|
2 to 3.6 |
9 |
TMPM382FWFG |
LQFP64 |
|
4.5 to 5.5 |
10 |
MB9AF312KPMC |
LQFP 48 - 0.5 mm pitch |
|
2.7 to 5.5 |
11 |
MB9AFB44NPMC |
LQFP 100 - 0.5 mm pitch |
|
2.7 to 5.5 |
12 |
SAM3N4C |
LQFP R-LQ100_M 100, TFBGA R-TFBGA100_S 100 |
-40 C to 85 C |
1.62 to 3.6 |
13 |
EFM32LG880F256-QFP100 |
QFP100 |
|
|
14 |
EFM32GG940F512-QFN64 |
QFN64 |
|
|
15 |
SAM3S4C |
LQFP R-LQ100_M 100,TFBGA R-TFBGA100_S 100 |
-40 C to 85 C |
1.62 to 3.6 |
16 |
HT32F1251B |
LQFP48 |
-40 C to 85 C |
2.7 to 3.6 |
17 |
LPC1343FHN33 |
HVQFN32 |
-40 C to 85 C |
3.6 |
18 |
STM32F103ZG |
LFBGA 144 10x10x1.7; LQFP 144 20x20x1.4 |
-40 C to 105 C |
2 to 3.6 |
19 |
MDR32F9Qx |
144 pin or 64 pin |
-40 C to 85 C |
2.2 to 3.6 |
20 |
TMPM369FYXBG |
TFBGA144 |
|
2.7 to 3.6 |
21 |
TMS470MF06607 |
LQFP100 |
-40 C to 125 C |
3.3 |
22 |
SAM3U4E |
LQFP R-LQ144_H 144 |
-40 C to 85 C |
1.62 to 3.6 |
23 |
LPC1768FET100 |
TFBGA100 |
-40 C to 85 C |
3.3 |
24 |
SAM3S16C |
|
-40 C to 85 C |
1.62 to 3.6 |
25 |
STM32F205RB |
LQFP 64 10x10x1.4 |
|
1.8 to 3.6 |
26 |
LPC1787FBD208 |
LQFP208 |
-40 C to 85 C |
3.3 |
27 |
STM32F207IG |
BGA 176; LQFP 176 24x24x1.4 |
|
1.8 to 3.6 |
28 |
TMPM320C1DFG |
LQFP144 |
|
1.2/3.3 |
29 |
MB9BF516RPMC |
LQFP 120 - 0.5 mm pitch |
|
2.7 to 5.5 |
30 |
LPC1850FET256 |
LBGA256 |
-40 C to 85 C |
3.3 |
Toshiba offers a wide variety of Cortex-M3 RISC microcontrollers
for a range of applications such as General purpose, Car-audio/display,
Low Voltage/Power, Industrial, Motor control, Automotive,
Timers, etc.,
For more details, refer to http://www.toshiba-components.com/microcontroller/Cortex.html
NXP's LPC1800 series operates at speeds up to 180 MHz,
LPC1700 series operates at speeds up to 120 MHz and LPC1300
series at speeds up to 72 MHz. NXP's LPC1800 is said to
be the world's fastest Cortex-M3 microcontroller.
More details are at http://www.nxp.com/products/microcontrollers/cortex_m3/#overview
STMicro's STM32 F1 is a series of Mainstream MCUs operates
from 24 MHz to 72 MHz, STM32 L1 series is the ultra-low-power
MCUs works at 32 MHz and STM32 F2 series is the high-performance
MCUs that operates at 120 MHz that is built on 90NVM process
technology with ART accelerator.
More details are at http://www.st.com/internet/mcu/family/141.jsp
Fujitsu Semiconductor's FM3 family of 32 bit microcontrollers
address a broad range of applications, from system controls
to small mobile products and the company plans to expand
the product line to reach more than 500 products from 210
in the year 2012.
More details are at http://jp.fujitsu.com/group/fsl/en/release/20120131.html
ARM Cortex-M4
Microcontroller: ARM Cortex-M4 processor
is a Cortex-M3 with the DSP instruction add-ons, and optional
floating-point unit (FPU). If a core contains an FPU, it
is known as Cortex-M4F, otherwise it is a Cortex-M4.
Key Features of ARM Cortex-M4: ARMv7-ME architecture,
Instruction Sets: Thumb(entire), Thumb-2(entire), 1-cycle
32-bit hardware multiply, 2-12 cycle 32-bit hardware divide,
saturated math support, DSP extension, Floating point extension,
3-stage pipeline with branch speculation, 1 to 240 physical
interrupts, plus NMI, 12 cycle interrupt latency, Integrated
sleep modes, 8 region memory protection unit (MPU) (silicon
option), 1.25 DMIPS/MHz
For more details, refer http://www.arm.com/products/processors/cortex-m/cortex-m4-processor.php
Parts selection table from key vendors:
Manufacturer Name |
Manufacturer Part Number |
Flash (Kbytes) |
Max Speed (MHz) |
CAN |
Atmel Corporation |
ATSAM4S16CA-AU |
1024 |
120 |
0 |
Energy Micro |
EFM32 Wonder Gecko |
256 |
|
|
Freescale Semiconductors |
MK10DN512ZVLL10 (Kinetis Family) |
512 |
100 |
2 |
Infineon Technologies |
XMC4500-F100x1024AA |
1024 |
120 |
3 |
NXP Semiconductors |
LPC4357FET256,551 |
1024 |
204 |
2 |
STMicroelectronics |
STM32F405RGT6 |
1024 |
168 |
2 |
Texas Instruments |
LM4F230H5QR (Stellaris Family) |
256 |
80 |
2 |
Texas Instruments |
LM4F110B2QRFIGR (Stellaris Family) |
32 |
80 |
1 |
Manufacturer Part Number |
UART |
ADC Channels |
I2S |
SSI/SPI |
I2C |
ATSAM4S16CA-AU |
4 |
16 |
|
3 |
2 |
EFM32 Wonder Gecko |
|
|
|
|
|
MK10DN512ZVLL10 (Kinetis Family) |
5 |
|
1 |
3 |
2 |
XMC4500-F100x1024AA |
|
18 |
|
|
|
LPC4357FET256,551 |
4 |
|
2 |
1 |
2 |
STM32F405RGT6 |
3 |
|
2 |
3 |
2 |
LM4F230H5QR (Stellaris Family) |
8 |
12 |
No |
4 |
4 |
LM4F110B2QRFIGR (Stellaris Family) |
8 |
12 |
No |
4 |
4 |
Manufacturer Part Number |
Package |
Operating Temperature |
Price($) |
ATSAM4S16CA-AU |
LQFP100 |
-40 to 105 C |
|
EFM32 Wonder Gecko |
|
|
2.64 |
MK10DN512ZVLL10 (Kinetis Family) |
LQFP100 14SQ1.4P0.5 C90 |
-40 to 105 C |
5.16 |
XMC4500-F100x1024AA |
LQFP-144, LQFP-100, LFBGA-144 |
Extended temp up to 125 C |
|
LPC4357FET256,551 |
LBGA256 |
-40 to 85 C |
|
STM32F405RGT6 |
LQFP64 10x10x1.4 |
-40 to 85 C |
8.326 |
LM4F230H5QR (Stellaris Family) |
LQFP64 |
|
4.55 |
LM4F110B2QRFIGR (Stellaris Family) |
LQFP64 |
|
|
Energy Micro's EFM32 Wonder Gecko product family has 60
variants in the range is said to be the "low power"
product. Claimed minimum active current consumption in Energy's
M4F is 180µA/MHz. Deep sleep with the real-time clock
(RTC) running is 400nA, down to 20nA in shut-off, with wake-up
as short as 2µs.
At 204 MHz, NXP's LPC4300 is one of the fastest ARM Cortex-M4
microcontroller featuring unique asymmetrical dual-core
architecture with two ARM processors - a Cortex-M4 core,
optimized for real-time processing, and a Cortex-M0 core,
optimized for real-time control. Both cores are capable
of running at 204 MHz. For more details, refer http://ics.nxp.com/products/mcus/cortex-m4/
TI's Stellaris M4F microcontrollers offer floating point
and a wide range of capabilities and peripherals. 12-bit
ADC accuracy is achievable at the full 1 MSPS rating without
any hardware averaging, eliminating any performance tradeoffs.
NXP is offering "emWin" Graphic Library free with
ARM microcontrollers. Developed by SEGGER, emWin provides
a robust, efficient GUI for any application operating with
a graphical LCD, and features outstanding support for high-quality
anti-aliased text and shapes. More details are at: http://www.nxp.com/news/press-releases/2011/09/NXP-to-Offer-emWin-Graphic-Library-Free-with-ARM-Microcontrollers.html
Fujitsu Semiconductor has added a new FM4 family of 32-bit
general purpose RISC microcontrollers based on the ARM Cortex-M4
processor core, featuring DSP and floating point (FPU) functions.
In addition, Fujitsu is also introducing a new FM0+ family
of devices based on the Cortex-M0+ core.
STM32 F4 from ST features the Cortex-M4 with FPU core and
large memory capacity combined with high-speed 168MHz maximum
CPU frequency for complex applications.
Note: The tables above are not 100% complete. There
are chances of errors in specifications, please cross check
with vendor's data sheets.