Monthly Archives: April 2016

Harnessing the power of the sun and creating light-harvesting or light-sensing devices requires a material that both absorbs light efficiently and converts the energy to highly mobile electrical current. Finding the ideal mix of properties in a single material is a challenge, so scientists have been experimenting with ways to combine different materials to create “hybrids” with enhanced features.

In two just-published papers, scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, Stony Brook University, and the University of Nebraska describe one such approach that combines the excellent light-harvesting properties of quantum dots with the tunable electrical conductivity of a layered tin disulfide semiconductor. The hybrid material exhibited enhanced light-harvesting properties through the absorption of light by the quantum dots and their energy transfer to tin disulfide, both in laboratory tests and when incorporated into electronic devices. The research paves the way for using these materials in optoelectronic applications such as energy-harvesting photovoltaics, light sensors, and light emitting diodes (LEDs).

According to Mircea Cotlet, the physical chemist who led this work at Brookhaven Lab’s Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN), a DOE Office of Science User Facility, “Two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides like tin disulfide have some promising properties for solar energy conversion and photodetector applications, including a high surface-to-volume aspect ratio. But no semiconducting material has it all. These materials are very thin and they are poor light absorbers. So we were trying to mix them with other nanomaterials like light-absorbing quantum dots to improve their performance through energy transfer.”

One paper, just published in the journal ACS Nano, describes a fundamental study of the hybrid quantum dot/tin disulfide material by itself. The work analyzes how light excites the quantum dots (made of a cadmium selenide core surrounded by a zinc sulfide shell), which then transfer the absorbed energy to layers of nearby tin disulfide.

“We have come up with an interesting approach to discriminate energy transfer from charge transfer, two common types of interactions promoted by light in such hybrids,” said Prahlad Routh, a graduate student from Stony Brook University working with Cotlet and co-first author of the ACS Nano paper. “We do this using single nanocrystal spectroscopy to look at how individual quantum dots blink when interacting with sheet-like tin disulfide. This straightforward method can assess whether components in such semiconducting hybrids interact either by energy or by charge transfer.”

The researchers found that the rate for non-radiative energy transfer from individual quantum dots to tin disulfide increases with an increasing number of tin disulfide layers. But performance in laboratory tests isn’t enough to prove the merits of potential new materials. So the scientists incorporated the hybrid material into an electronic device, a photo-field-effect-transistor, a type of photon detector commonly used for light sensing applications.

As described in a paper published online March 24 in Applied Physics Letters, the hybrid material dramatically enhanced the performance of the photo-field-effect transistors-resulting in a photocurrent response (conversion of light to electric current) that was 500 percent better than transistors made with the tin disulfide material alone.

“This kind of energy transfer is a key process that enables photosynthesis in nature,” said Chang-Yong Nam, a materials scientist at Center for Functional Nanomaterials and co-corresponding author of the APL paper. “Researchers have been trying to emulate this principle in light-harvesting electrical devices, but it has been difficult particularly for new material systems such as the tin disulfide we studied. Our device demonstrates the performance benefits realized by using both energy transfer processes and new low-dimensional materials.”

Cotlet concludes, “The idea of ‘doping’ two-dimensional layered materials with quantum dots to enhance their light absorbing properties shows promise for designing better solar cells and photodetectors.”

Rudolph Technologies, Inc. today announced the availability of new, high-speed 3D metrology on its flagship NSX Series, a highly-flexible inspection and measurement platform for process development and control of die-level interconnects. Already in use by multiple customers worldwide, the NSX Series with high-speed 3D metrology is capable of both high-volume production monitoring and advanced process development.

“The new capability provides a 200-400 percent throughput improvement over our previous Wafer Scanner bump metrology system, and when paired with our Discover Software, provides a complete coplanarity solution for our customers,” said Scott Balak, Rudolph’s director, inspection product management. “With the increasing number of new packaging technologies being developed by foundries, outsourced assembly and test (OSAT) manufacturers, and integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), the flexibility and reliability of this new capability on the trusted NSX Series platform is especially valuable to customers seeking to move rapidly from pilot lines to production.”

Data is collected in seconds from millions of bumps and then analyzed by Rudolph’s Discover Software analysis database. Engineers gain unique insight into critical metrology applications, from both an individual bump point of view or holistically as a wafer, as part of a simultaneous product and process control solution.

“Manufacturers are looking for a more comprehensive and flexible process control solution that provides, not only inspection or bump data, but also usable analytical information about their processes,” said Mike Goodrich, vice president and general manager of Rudolph’s Process Control Group. “Our powerful Discover analysis software provides insight into the process that is otherwise unavailable to process control tool owners. The high-speed 3D bump metrology capability incorporates a three segment optical range, giving our customers the flexibility to control both smaller micro bumps and larger traditional solder bumps with a single inspection and metrology platform. When combined with Rudolph’s advanced automation capability, customers can measure thin and warped wafers without the extra expense of frame and tape mounting.”

Goodrich concluded, “We understand the importance of 3DIC and next-generation packaging processes and we have aggressively pursued development of this comprehensive 3D coplanarity solution to meet our customers’ needs for a cost efficient, multi-functional process control tool.”

Leti, an Institute of CEA Tech, and ARaymondlife, a manufacturer of customized devices and consumables for the IVD industry today announced a joint initiative to accelerate the development and manufacturing of innovative medical devices, especially in the field of microfluidic cartridge analysis.

The initiative, based on experiences from ongoing projects, will focus on cartridges that enclose portable bio-med systems that enable sample analysis where the patient is dramatically reducing both the time to see the results and the cost of an analysis.

More broadly, Leti and ARaymondlife will collaborate on future projects that capitalize on their complementary strengths. Leti has joined the network of selected partners initiated by ARaymondlife according to their know-how and capabilities to guide its product-development projects, and ARaymondlife is a preferred partner for the development platform of medical devices that Leti has recently established.

“This partnership combines our competencies in ways that will significantly speed the development and time-to-market of analytical tools and systems for Leti’s partners and ARaymondlife customers,” said Leti CEO Marie Semeria. “It also capitalizes on the technological diversity of the local ecosystem and underscores the Grenoble region’s excellence in medical technology.”

By combining their complementary strengths, the partners expect to support the development of turnkey solutions for companies that want to introduce new products in the medical technology industry, but require additional analytical resources, technical competencies or manufacturing tools.

“The strict standards and high costs for developing medical devices require that prototypes used for clinical testing not only meet quality regulations, but that also are almost identical to the final product,” said Philippe Daurenjou, ARaymondlife Commercial Director. “This partnership with Leti uses our complementary strengths to meet those requirements effectively and cost efficiently, and make our customers more competitive.”

The two partners anticipate working together on projects that will combine Leti’s expertise in developing analytical protocols with Araymondlife’s manufacturing capacity. On those projects, ARaymondlife would be involved very early in the development cycle to check the viability of the proposed solution in the manufacturing processes. The team will make modifications to improve the reliability of the product and reduce production costs, as needed.

In addition to its med-tech uses, Leti’s technology also is well-suited for rapid and cost-effective onsite analysis in environmental, agricultural and veterinary applications.

With the semiconductor industry in Vietnam expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.3% over the period of 2014 to 2019, momentum is growing in this emerging market. The electronics supply chain will convene at SEMICON Southeast Asia (SEA) from 26-28 April at the Subterranean Penang International Convention and Exhibition Centre (SPICE) in Penang, Malaysia to explore new opportunities and technology.

The increase in Vietnam is driven by the recent increase in demand for devices. Electronics accounted for 23% of all Vietnam exports in 2014, up from only 5% in 2010, making it a key development focus of the Vietnamese government (Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency). “Foreign direct investment” manufactured goods make up a large portion of the electronics export market, with only a small percentage contributed by local Vietnam companies. The electronics industry in Vietnam increased its market share of the electronics industry to 38% in 2014, and with the increasing number of electronic items, Vietnam finds itself at the cusp of being an important electronics exporter within the region.

SEMI, the global industry association serving the electronics manufacturing supply chain, will include programs pertinent to Vietnam’s semiconductor industry at the upcoming SEMICON SEA 2016, the region’s premier showcase for microelectronics innovation.

According to Ng Kai Fai, president of SEMI Southeast Asia, “Forums and discussion sessions during SEMICON SEA 2016 benefit electronic players from Vietnam in terms of technology development as well as the bigger picture of Vietnam’s market segment. The conference is an ideal platform for local semiconductor companies and start-ups to learn more about the technology trends that can be applied to Vietnam’s electronics growing importance. At the same time, multinational corporations use this event to learn about the Vietnam supply chain, assisting the build-up of a local ecosystem over the long run.”

“SEMICON SEA 2016 offers a complete platform for engaging customers, suppliers, engineers and decision-makers from across the industry. With the objective to champion regional collaboration, the showcase will open new business opportunities for customers and foster stronger cross-regional engagement. The event is sold-out for exhibitors for the first-time ever. With 200 global exhibitors and more than 60 industry luminaries presenting at the event, it offers a compelling reason why Vietnamese semiconductor stakeholders should attend this “don’t miss” electronics event,” Ng Kai Fai added.

SEMICON SEA 2016 will focus on the key trends and solutions in semiconductor design and manufacturing, including emphasis on serving the needs of expanding applications markets many of which require development of specialised materials, packaging, and test technologies, as well as new architectures and processes.

To register for SEMICON SEA 2016 or to explore exhibiting opportunities, visit http://www.semiconsea.org/ or contact Ms. Shannen Koh at [email protected].

Sponsors for SEMICON SEA 2016 include Advantest, Applied Materials, AMEC, ASE, Chip Shine, Edward Technologies, GLOBALFOUNDRIES, EV Group, Indium, KLA-Tencor, Kulicke & Soffa, Lam Research, SCREEN, Siemens, Tokyo Electron and Xcerra Corporation. Partners include Invest Penang, LEDExpo Thailand 2016, VLSI Consultancy, MATRADE, Malaysia Investment & Development Authority (MIDA), Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia, Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), Penang Tourism, SAMENTA and Singapore Manufacturing Federation.

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have demonstrated a new approach to modifying the light absorption and stretchability of atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) materials by surface topographic engineering using only mechanical strain. The highly flexible system has future potential for wearable technology and integrated biomedical optical sensing technology when combined with flexible light-emitting diodes.

“Increasing graphene’s low light absorption in visible range is an important prerequisite for its broad potential applications in photonics and sensing,” explained SungWoo Nam, an assistant professor of mechanical science and engineering at Illinois. “This is the very first stretchable photodetector based exclusively on graphene with strain-tunable photoresponsivity and wavelength selectivity.”

Graphene–an atomically thin layer of hexagonally bonded carbon atoms–has been extensively investigated in advanced photodetectors for its broadband absorption, high carrier mobility, and mechanical flexibility. Due to graphene’s low optical absorptivity, graphene photodetector research so far has focused on hybrid systems to increase photoabsorption. However, such hybrid systems require a complicated integration process, and lead to reduced carrier mobility due to the heterogeneous interfaces.

According to Nam, the key element enabling increased absorption and stretchability requires engineering the two-dimensional material into three-dimensional (3D) “crumpled structures,” increasing the graphene’s areal density. The continuously undulating 3D surface induces an areal density increase to yield higher optical absorption per unit area, thereby improving photoresponsivity. Crumple density, height, and pitch are modulated by applied strain and the crumpling is fully reversible during cyclical stretching and release, introducing a new capability of strain-tunable photoabsorption enhancement and allowing for a highly responsive photodetector based on a single graphene layer.

“We achieved more than an order-of-magnitude enhancement of the optical extinction via the buckled 3D structure, which led to an approximately 400% enhancement in photoresponsivity,” stated Pilgyu Kang, and first author of the paper, “Crumpled Graphene Photodetector with Enhanced, Strain-tunable and Wavelength-selective Photoresponsivity,” appearing in the journal, Advanced Materials. “The new strain-tunable photoresponsivity resulted in a 100% modulation in photoresponsivity with a 200% applied strain. By integrating colloidal photonic crystal–a strain-tunable optomechanical filter–with the stretchable graphene photodetector, we also demonstrated a unique strain-tunable wavelength selectivity.”

“This work demonstrates a robust approach for stretchable and flexible graphene photodetector devices,” Nam added. “We are the first to report a stretchable photodetector with stretching capability to 200% of its original length and no limit on detection wavelength. Furthermore, our approach to enhancing photoabsorption by crumpled structures can be applied not only to graphene, but also to other emerging 2D materials.”

jimmy sized 4Solid State Technology is pleased to announced that Jimmy Goodrich of the Semiconductor Industry Association is the latest distinguished guest confirmed to speak at The ConFab 2016.

Jimmy Goodrich is vice president for global policy at SIA. In this role, Mr. Goodrich works closely with SIA member companies, the Administration, Congress, domestic and international stakeholders, and foreign government officials to advance all aspects of SIA’s international policy agenda. Mr. Goodrich is also an Executive Committee member of the United States Information Technology Office (USITO), representing SIA in his capacity.

Mr. Goodrich has nearly a decade of experience working with Chinese and global stakeholders on technology policy issues. He most recently served as Director of Global Policy at the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), where he worked on a wide range of China and Asia-Pacific technology policy issues relating to cyber security, trade, standards, and Internet governance. Before joining ITI, Mr. Goodrich was the Director for Greater China Government Affairs at Cisco Systems in Beijing. He also has held positions at APCO Worldwide’s Beijing office, a public affairs consultancy, and USITO, which represents U.S. information technology firms in China.

Mr. Goodrich has a bachelor’s degree in comparative politics and East Asian studies from Ohio University.  He lived in China for more than 7 years and is fluent in Mandarin.

Space is limited, but there’s still time to register for The ConFab 2016. To learn more, visit theconfab.com.

Worldwide semiconductor wafer-level manufacturing equipment revenue totaled $33.6 billion in 2015, a 1 percent decline from 2014, according to final results by Gartner, Inc. The top 10 vendors accounted for 77 percent of the market, down slightly from 78 percent in 2014.

“Slowing demand for key electronics end markets, combined with looming oversupply in memory, prompted semiconductor manufacturers to adopt conservative capital spending plans in 2015, which impacted spending on WFE,” said Bob Johnson, research vice president at Gartner. “Strength in memory spending was not sufficient to overcome caution in logic markets as major producers focused on logic process upgrades instead of adding new capacity.”

Applied Materials retained the No. 1 position in the WFE market with 1.3 percent growth (see Table 1). The industry’s investments in 3D device manufacturing, fin field-effect transistor (FinFET) and 3D NAND were the main drivers for the company’s growth in 2015. Lam Research experienced the strongest growth of the top 10 vendors in 2015, moving into the No. 2 position. The move of the industry to 3D device manufacturing pushed the company to 24.7 percent growth. Lam continues to be the dominant conductor etch manufacturer, but competition in the etch and deposition segment is expected to be fierce moving forward.

Table 1. Top 10 Companies’ Revenue From Shipments of Total Wafer-Level Manufacturing Equipment, Worldwide (Millions of U.S. Dollars)

Rank 2015

Rank 2014

Vendor

2015

Revenue

2015 Market Share (%)

2014

Revenue

2014-2015 Growth (%)

1

1

Applied Materials

6,420.2

19.1

6,335.1

1.3

2

4

Lam Research

4,808.3

14.3

3,857.0

24.7

3

2

ASML

4,730.9

14.1

5,634.5

-16.0

4

3

Tokyo Electron

4,325.0

12.9

4,666.7

-7.3

5

5

KLA-Tencor

2,043.2

6.1

2,129.2

-4.0

6

6

Screen Semiconductor Solutions

971.5

2.9

1,128.0

-13.9

7

10

Hitachi High-Technologies

788.3

2.3

937.3

-15.9

8

7

Nikon

724.2

2.2

818.1

-11.5

9

9

Hitachi Kokusai

633.8

1.9

599.3

5.7

10

13

ASM International

582.5

1.7

557.2

4.5

Others

7,576.7

22.5

7,271.2

4.2

Total Market

33,604.3

100

33,933.6

-1.0

Source: Gartner (April 2016)

“Capital spending in 2015 was selective, with logic manufacturers focused on upgrades and the latest technology buys, while memory added new capacity in response to increased demand and favorable pricing,” said Mr. Johnson. “However, there was another factor at work: Both the yen and euro declined significantly against the dollar in 2015. In a market which was essentially flat over the previous year, the changes in these exchange rates had a noticeable effect, especially in the lithography segment, where all tools are priced in either euros or yen.”

In dollar terms, lithography dropped 13 percent, the largest decline of any of the major segments. Two segments were especially strong: The ion implant segment grew 24 percent, and the material removal and clean segment grew 6 percent. Process control overall declined 2.5 percent, with the optical patterned wafer inspection segment dropping 15 percent as manufacturers held back on purchases of new inspection tools.

Additional information is provided in the Gartner report “Market Share: Semiconductor Wafer-Level Manufacturing Equipment, Worldwide, 2015.” The report provides rankings and market share for the top 10 vendors. In 2015, Gartner changed the segment reporting to focus on wafer-level manufacturing and is no longer providing segment details for die-level packaging or automatic test. This report is limited to wafer-level manufacturing equipment.

A finely tuned carbon nanotube thin film has the potential to act as a thermoelectric power generator that captures and uses waste heat, according to researchers at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

The research could help guide the manufacture of thermoelectric devices based on either single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) films or composites containing these nanotubes. Because more than half of the energy consumed worldwide is rejected primarily as waste heat, the idea of thermoelectric power generation is emerging as an important part of renewable energy and energy-efficiency portfolios.

“There have not been many examples where people have really looked at the intrinsic thermoelectric properties of carbon nanotubes and that’s what we feel this paper does,” said Andrew Ferguson, a research scientist in NREL’s Chemical and Materials Science Center and co-lead author of the paper with Jeffrey Blackburn.

The research, “Tailored Semiconducting Carbon Nanotube Networks with Enhanced Thermoelectric Properties,” appears in the journal Nature Energy, and is a collaboration between NREL, Professor Yong-Hyun Kim’s group at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, and Professor Barry Zink’s group at the University of Denver. The other authors from NREL are Azure Avery (now an assistant professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver), Ben Zhou, Elisa Miller, Rachelle Ihly, Kevin Mistry, and Sarah Guillot.

Nanostructured inorganic semiconductors have demonstrated promise for improving the performance of thermoelectric devices. Inorganic materials can run into problems when the semiconductor needs to be lightweight, flexible, or irregularly shaped because they are often heavy and lack the required flexibility. Carbon nanotubes, which are organic, are lighter and more flexible.

How useful a particular SWCNT is for thermoelectrics, however, depends on whether the nanotube is metallic or a semiconductor, both of which are produced simultaneously in SWCNT syntheses. A metallic nanotube would harm devices such as a thermoelectric generator, whereas a semiconductor nanotube actually enhances performance. Furthermore, as with most optical and electrical devices, the electrical band gap of the semiconducting SWCNT should affect the thermoelectric performance as well.

Fortunately, Blackburn, a senior scientist and manager of NREL’s Spectroscopy and Photoscience group, has developed an expertise at separating semiconducting nanotubes from metallic ones and his methods were critical to the research, Ferguson said.

“We are at a distinct advantage here that we can actually use that to probe the fundamental properties of the nanotubes,” he said.

To generate highly enriched semiconducting samples, the researchers extracted nanotubes from polydisperse soot using polyfluorene-based polymers. The semiconducting SWCNTs were prepared on a glass substrate to create a film, which was then soaked in a solution of oxidant, triethyloxonium hexachloroantimonate (OA), a process known as “doping.” Doping increases the density of charge carriers, which flow through the film to conduct electricity. The researchers found the samples that performed the best were exposed to a higher concentration of OA, but not at the highest doping levels. They also discovered an optimum diameter for a carbon nanotube to achieve the best thermoelectric performance.

When it comes to thermoelectric materials, a trade-off exists between thermopower (the voltage obtained when subjecting a material to a temperature gradient) and electrical conductivity because thermopower decreases with increasing conductivity. The researchers discovered, however, that with carbon nanotubes you can retain large thermopowers even at very high electrical conductivities. Furthermore, the researchers found that their doping strategy, while dramatically increasing the electrical conductivity, actually decreased the thermal conductivity. This unexpected result is another benefit of carbon nanotubes for thermoelectric power generation, since the best thermoelectric materials must have high electrical conductivity and thermopower, while maintaining low thermal conductivity.

Becoming crystal clear


April 6, 2016

Using state-of-the-art theoretical methods, UCSB researchers have identified a specific type of defect in the atomic structure of a light-emitting diode (LED) that results in less efficient performance. The characterization of these point defects could result in the fabrication of even more efficient, longer lasting LED lighting.

“Techniques are available to assess whether such defects are present in the LED materials and they can be used to improve the quality of the material,” said materials professor Chris Van de Walle, whose research group carried out the work.

In the world of high-efficiency solid-state lighting, not all LEDs are alike. As the technology is utilized in a more diverse array of applications — including search and rescue, water purification and safety illumination, in addition to their many residential, industrial and decorative uses — reliability and efficiency are top priorities. Performance, in turn, is heavily reliant on the quality of the semiconductor material at the atomic level.

“In an LED, electrons are injected from one side, holes from the other,” explained Van de Walle. As they travel across the crystal lattice of the semiconductor — in this case gallium-nitride-based material — the meeting of electrons and holes (the absence of electrons) is what is responsible for the light that is emitted by the diode: As electron meets hole, it transitions to a lower state of energy, releasing a photon along the way.

Occasionally, however, the charge carriers meet and do not emit light, resulting in the so-called Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) recombination. According to the researchers, the charge carriers are captured at defects in the lattice where they combine, but without emitting light.

The defects identified involve complexes of gallium vacancies with oxygen and hydrogen. “These defects had been previously observed in nitride semiconductors, but until now, their detrimental effects were not understood,” explained lead author Cyrus Dreyer, who performed many of the calculations on the paper.

“It was the combination of the intuition that we have developed over many years of studying point defects with these new theoretical capabilities that enabled this breakthrough,” said Van de Walle, who credits co-author Audrius Alkauskas with the development of a theoretical formalism necessary to calculate the rate at which defects capture electrons and holes.

The method lends itself to future work identifying other defects and mechanisms by which SRH recombination occurs, said Van de Walle.

“These gallium vacancy complexes are surely not the only defects that are detrimental,” he said. “Now that we have the methodology in place, we are actively investigating other potential defects to assess their impact on nonradiative recombination.”

STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) has surpassed two billion unit sales of its robust and versatile STM8 microcontrollers, less than two years after reaching one billion unit sales, noting particularly strong success in China.

Aided by these accelerating STM8 sales, ST’s share of the general-purpose microcontroller market has grown to 12.7% in 2015 from 8.2% in 2013, according to World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS).

“The STM8 has become one of the world’s most popular microcontrollers, and is a sturdy pillar of our strategy,” said Daniel Colonna, Microcontrollers Marketing Director, STMicroelectronics. “As with all of our MCUs, we are committed to supporting STM8 for the long term, and we’ll continue to strengthen our market position.”

The STM8 provides an economical and efficient electronic brain for smart devices in daily use throughout the world, such as white goods, consumer products, automotive control units (ECUs), and industrial controls. It combines class-leading computing power and competitive pricing with support for memory-efficient coding, low power consumption, high feature integration, versatile configurations, and an outstanding development ecosystem that facilitates design, debug, and prototyping. In addition, built-in memory cycling and error checking, as well as high reliability for automotive applications, have made STM8 a benchmark for robust embedded performance.

The large number of devices shipped reflects the microcontroller’s appeal to OEMs serving high-volume markets, and the work of ST’s distributors worldwide who have helped design STM8 devices into a wide variety of projects. Sales performance has been particularly impressive in China through ST’s top microcontroller distributors, Willas-Array, Wintech and Yosun, targeting products for the country’s domestic market as well as for export.

Key technical features of STM8 microcontrollers:

— Proprietary CPU core with best-in-class performance
— High code efficiency enabling more sophisticated applications in smaller
memory footprint
— 1.65V to 5.5V power-supply range covers many application types
— 2KB to 128KB on-chip Flash; up to 2KB data EEPROM
— Multiple package types from 20-pin to 80-pin, including LQFP, WLCSP,
QFN20-48, SO-20, TSSOP-20
— High integration for cost-effective system design:

— ADC, DAC, multiple channels up to 12-bit
— Rich serial interfaces
— Multiple timers
— Display controllers up to 8 x 40 LCD
— Flexible, power-saving clock system
— Up to 68 high-current I/Os