December 12, 2013 – Silicon Labs (NASDAQ: SLAB, Country Manager In-gyu Kim), a global leader in high-performance analog-intensive mixed-signal ICs, announced the release of two new options optimized for cost-effective and performance-intensive designs to its 8-bit Si10xx wireless microcontroller (MCU) family. By integrating ultra-low-power MCU technology with sub-GHz EZRadio® and EZRadioPRO® transceivers into a single-chip solution, Silicon Labs has designed a new energy-friendly wireless MCU with the lowest total power consumption in its class and industry-leading RF performance. The Si106x and Si108x wireless MCUs support the 142 to 1050 MHz global frequency band in low-power standby and operating modes suitable for extending battery life, and meet the low-energy and RF connectivity requirements essential for long-range control applications for home automation, security and access control, sensor networks, asset tracking, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The Si106x and Si108x devices, the highest-performing and smallest wireless MCU solutions on the market, integrate an energy-efficient 8051 MCU and sub-GHz RF transceiver into a 5 mm x 6 mm QFN package. The compact footprint makes the Si106x/8x wireless MCUs ideal for space-constrained applications requiring ultra-low power for wireless connectivity as well as long battery life. The highly integrated, small package of a single chip reduces system cost, design complexity, board size, and component count. This device features a crossbar decoder as a priority, which allows designers complete control over various functions, including a 10-bit ADC converter, dual comparators, four 16-bit timers, as well as UART, SPI, and 12C interfaces. This flexible crossbar configuration eliminates the constraints of trade-offs that are always present in small packages.

Si106x/8x wireless MCUs based on EZRadio transceivers provide a cost-effective and high-value solution suitable for the majority of embedded wireless designs. More demanding connected device applications can benefit from the higher wireless performance offered by Si106x/8x devices that include EZRadioPRO transceivers. EZRadioPRO transceivers provide superior receive sensitivity (-126 dBm) and higher output power (+20 dBm) for long-range applications. The 146 dB link budget of the EZRadioPRO transceiver maximizes wireless coverage, and 60 dB adjacent channel selectivity at 12.5 kHz channel spacing ensures robust operation in harsh RF conditions. The EZRadioPRO transceiver is designed to support all major band frequencies up to 1050 MHz and data rates ranging from 100 bps to 1 Mbps, while also complying with the industry's strictest wireless standards, including FCC, ETSI, and ARIB.

The Si106x/8x product family is the most energy-efficient sub-GHz wireless MCU family among commercially available products. Both wireless MCU family options exhibit very low power consumption when the radio is operating, with 18mA during +10dBm transmission and 10.7mA in low-power receive mode. Low-power mode can significantly reduce power consumption when the radio is not operating or is turned off, showing 30 nA in shutdown, 50 nA in standby, and 600 nA in sleep mode. With built-in DC-DC boost support, it can operate down to 0.9V for single-cell battery operation, extending the lifespan of battery-powered products while reducing system costs.

Geir Førre, Vice President and General Manager of Silicon Labs’ microcontroller products, said, “The Si106x/8x wireless MCU family integrates superior features such as outstanding energy efficiency, industry-leading RF performance and link budget, and the smallest package size compared to peers, providing ideal sub-GHz connectivity for space-constrained and power-sensitive wireless applications. The new wireless MCU family offers developers the flexibility to choose cost-effective yet high-performance options, and provides a wireless development suite that supports simple and easy-to-use wireless designs.”

The Si106x/8x wireless MCU family supports a wide range of device configurations, including cost-effective EZRadio and high-performance EZRadioPRO transceivers, 8 to 64 kB of flash memory, and 768 bytes to 4 kB of RAM. Additionally, wireless MCU devices include products with a maximum output power of +13 dBm or +20 dBm.