Atmel Launches the AT90SC3232 AVR Flash Based Secure Microcontroller for Smart Card and Security Applications.SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 1999-- Atmel Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML ATML Automatic Test Markup Language ATML Automated Test Markup Language ) announced today the introduction of the AT90SC3232, the latest member of its AT90SC AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulation) See voltage regulator. (R) Flash secure microcontroller product line. Featuring 32K bytes of on-chip Flash program memory, 32K bytes of EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM) A rewritable memory chip that holds its content without power. Although EEPROMs spawned flash memory, EEPROMs are byte addressable at the write level, whereas flash chips must erase a block of bytes before rewriting. data memory and 1.5K bytes of RAM workspace, it is built around Atmel's proprietary 8-bit AVR(R) microcontroller. The AT90SC3232 is intended for Smart Card applications such as GSM, PCS (1) (Personal Communications Services) Refers to wireless services that emerged after the U.S. government auctioned commercial licenses in 1994 and 1995. This radio spectrum in the 1. , or PEN mobile telephone SIM cards, as well as access control, identification and authentication applications. It is ideal for supporting multiple applications with the same device. It can handle complex encryption algorithms using its embedded AVR MCU (1) (MicroController Unit) A computer on a single chip. See microcontroller. (2) (Multipoint Control Unit) A device that is used to moderate a videoconference of three or more end points (users at computers or groups of users . If more sophisticated security algorithms or faster processing are required, Atmel provides another device in the same family, the AT90SC3232C with a proprietary on-chip crypto-accelerator. The size of the GSM SIM card market gives an idea of the potential for the AT90SC3232: leading SIM card maker Gemplus estimates it at 65 million units in 1997, rising to 760 million units in 2003. Frost & Sulivan notes that GSM has the greatest market share in terms of worldwide mobile telephone revenue. Like all members of the AT90SC family, the AT90SC3232 uses Flash program memory, instead of ROM. This gives outstanding advantages to the application developer. By eliminating the ROM mask cycle, and allowing software development on the production device, it reduces time-to-market for a new product. It also allows one product to cope with several applications, which means reduced inventory and lower costs. The AVR's RISC RISC in full Reduced Instruction Set Computing Computer architecture that uses a limited number of instructions. RISC became popular in microprocessors in the 1980s. architecture and 32 general-purpose registers enable it to run at close to one instruction per clock cycle. This makes it up to 10 times faster than conventional 8-bit MCUs. Its low power consumption makes it ideal for battery-powered and hand-held applications. Its optimized code density from C code source facilitates software development. Among the many security features of the AT90SC series are a memory supervisor which provides firewalls to ensure the integrity of code and data for multiple applications on the same device. In addition there are voltage and frequency checks, bus scrambling, secure physical layout. To facilitate software development, the AT90SC series is supplied with a software development kit (SDK (Software Developer's Kit) See developer's toolkit and Windows SDK. SDK - Software Developers Kit (or "Software Development Kit"). ) based on the IAR IAR - Instruction Address Register. The IBM name for program counter. (TM) chain. Including a hardware emulator, this kit allows application developers to perform in-depth verification and debugging. The SDK includes a development chip, functionally identical to the production version, but with direct access to internal buses. During final validation and production rampup, production cards can be programmed immediately using the built-in in-system programming facility. This is possible thanks to the Flash program memory. The AT90SC3232 is available now, as wafers or in module form. Prices start at $4.20 for 100K units. Founded in 1984, Atmel Corporation is headquartered in San Jose, California San Jose (IPA: /ˌsænhoʊˈzeɪ/) is the third-largest city in California, and the tenth-largest in the United States. It is the county seat of Santa Clara County. with principal manufacturing facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado The City of Colorado Springs is the second most populous city (after Denver) in the state of Colorado and the 48th most populous city in the United States.[4] The city is the county seat of El Paso County. , Nantes and Rousset, France and Heilbronn, Germany. Atmel designs, manufactures and markets on a worldwide basis advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory, and RF semiconductors. Atmel is also a leading provider of system level integration semiconductor solutions using advanced CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Pronounced "c-moss." The most widely used integrated circuit design. It is found in almost every electronic product from handheld devices to mainframes. , BiCMOS, BiPolar and SiGe process technologies. Atmel product and financial information are available from its Fax-on-Demand service. In North America call 1-800-292-8635 or Internationally, call 1-408-441-0732. Requests may be made via e-mail to literature@atmel.com or by visiting Atmel's website at www.atmel.com. (c) Copyright Atmel Corporation 1999. Atmel, the Atmel logo and combinations thereof are trademarks of Atmel Corporation. Additional terms and product names in this document may be trademarks of others. |
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