Automotive applications are increasingly depending on microcontrollers (MCUs) with embedded flash memory to ensure the high performance and reliability required for safety-critical and infotainment applications. To extend the availability of these solutions, Microchip Technology Inc. subsidiary Silicon Storage Technology (SST) announced that its high-speed embedded SuperFlash® technology is qualified to Automotive Electronics Council’s AEC-Q100 Grade 1 on United Microelectronics Corporation’s 55 nm platform.
SST’s embedded SuperFlash technology offers low power, high reliability, superior data retention and endurance across broad markets. For example, in automotive applications, SuperFlash technology provides IC designers with a cost-effective, embedded flash solution that meets high speed and dependability requirements. As electronic content in vehicles continues to rise, the technology’s fast access time, power efficiency and fast erase speeds are crucial for automotive applications.
“As part of the AEC-Q100 Grade 1 qualification on UMC’s 55 nm platform, SST’s SuperFlash technology completed a very high bar in endurance testing, including 700,000 program/erase cycles and 20 years of data retention,” said Mark Reiten, vice president of SST, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Microchip. “The partnership with UMC will enable automotive customers who require low-power, high-endurance embedded flash to keep their production costs down by using the 55 nm platform.”
“Since qualifying SST’s SuperFlash technology on UMC’s 55 nm in 2015, we have engaged with multiple customers for a variety of end market applications,” said Steven Liu, vice president of Corporate Marketing Division at UMC. “With this latest milestone to successfully achieve automotive-grade qualification, UMC customers can confidently utilize SST 55 nm SuperFlash technology for their automotive IC designs manufactured in UMC’s fabs, which have all been IATF-16949 certified to meet stringent automotive quality production standards.”
