A Low-Cost, Low Power Memory Solution For IoT Devices

Why antifuse technology is the best choice for MCUs and one-time programmable memory.

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The Internet of Things (IoT) connects everyday devices onto the Internet to gather information using sensors, embedded systems, and MEMS (micro-electrical mechanical systems). That information is then processed to increase efficiency or enable new services.

With the proliferation of smartphones, tablets and laptops, industry estimates that there are currently more than five-billion devices connected to the internet. However, the number of connected devices will exceed 25-billion units by 2020, with some predicting twice as many — more than 50 billion — by 2020. This translates to trillions of dollars in spending for consumers and revenue for companies.

At the heart (or brain) of the Internet of things is the microcontroller (MCU) — it’s what makes the IoT device “smart.” Microcontrollers are low-cost, low-power embedded chips that have a built-in processor and memory. These chips rely on battery power or harvested energy, thus can only consume uW’s of power. In addition to the processor, these microcontrollers require a memory structure to store the programming code. The most common solutions include ROM, embedded flash and external EEPROM with an embedded SRAM.

Although they serve their purpose, these solutions have their drawbacks. To read more, click here.



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