The SAM L family, an addition to Atmel's ARM based MCU portfolio, is said to extend battery life 'from years to decades' in devices such as fire alarms and devices placed in remote areas.
SAM L21, which is sampling now, integrates Atmel's proprietary picoPower technology, allowing it to consume one third of the power drawn by competing solutions. According to figures published by EEMBC, the SAM L21 achieves a score of 185, the best yet for any Cortex-M based device. Atmel says the SAM L21 family is suited to a range of applications, including consumer, industrial and medical devices.
"With more than two decades of MCU experience, picoPower technology is part of Atmel's heritage," said Pat Sullivan, vice president of marketing for Atmel's MCU business unit. "As the leader in low-power technology, Atmel is committed to providing the industry with a truly differentiated and unparalleled ultra low power solution optimised for the IoT. When paired with Atmel's wireless and security solutions, it offers the perfect IoT platform."
SAM L21 devices feature clock speeds of up to 48MHz and can be supplied with up to 256kbyte of flash and up to 40kbyte of SRAM. With a full speed USB device and embedded host, the MCU also features a 12bit A/D converter with up to 20 channels and a 12bit 2channel D/A converter. The parts are available in QFP and QFN package options with up to 64pins.
