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Microchip has added dsPIC33AK256MPS306 digital signal controllers to its dsPIC33A family, aiming at high-density power conversion, motor control and intelligent sensing designs.

The devices combine real-time control, integrated analog functions and post-quantum cryptography support. For eeNews Europe readers, this is relevant as it reflects growing design pressure in AI-driven power infrastructure and industrial control, where integration, efficiency and security increasingly intersect.

Real-time control for power and sensing

The dsPIC33AK256MPS306 family is built around a 200MHz 32bit core with a double-precision FPU. It integrates 78ps high-resolution PWMs, multiple 40MSPS 12bit ADCs, 5ns comparators and DACs with slope compensation.

These functions are intended to support deterministic control loops in DC/DC converters, auxiliary power rails and sensing systems, including designs using SiC and GaN devices at higher switching frequencies.

“We’re seeing customers look beyond individual components and focus on how quickly and confidently they can bring a system to life,” said Joe Thomsen, corporate vice president of Microchip’s digital signal controller business unit. “These DSCs address those needs by combining a broad set of control, analog and security capabilities together in a single device. That integration, combined with a comprehensive development ecosystem, helps teams manage complexity and meet evolving performance and cybersecurity requirements from early design through deployment.”

Security and connectivity for connected control

The dsPIC33AK256MPS306 devices include hardware support for secure boot, secure firmware updates and secure debug. Microchip also provides library support for CNSA Suite 2.0 recommended post-quantum cryptographic algorithms.

The company says the devices include hardware-accelerated cryptographic functions needed in Open Compute Project power supplies and other connected real-time control designs. Live update support is designed to allow full-cycle firmware updates without interrupting operation.

Connectivity includes I3C for low-latency telemetry and sensor networks, alongside CANFD, LIN, SPI, I2C and SENT.

Motor control and development support

For motor control, the dsPIC33A architecture supports 20ns sine and cosine function execution for field-oriented control and position-control algorithms. The family also includes interfaces for BiSS-C, EnDat, quadrature/optical encoders and resolvers.

The devices are being developed under automotive ISO 26262 and industrial IEC 61508 functional safety processes, with automotive qualification planned for operation up to 150°C.

Development support includes MPLAB X IDE, MPLAB Code Configurator, the MPLAB Machine Learning Development Suite and Zephyr RTOS support. The devices are also compatible with FreeRTOS, SafeRTOS, wolfCrypt libraries, Vector MICROSAR IO and Lauterbach TRACE32 tools.

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