Introduction

One of the best benefits of a microcontroller are the Core Independent Peripherals (CIPs), which improve the performance of the CPU, reduce power consumption and/or add new capabilities to the device. Advances in CIPs have allowed microcontrollers to integrate in the analog domain with on-board operational amplifiers (OPA/OPAMP), Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADCs) and Digital-to-Analog Converters (DACs). While discrete devices may offer higher analog performance, the integrated analog CIPs offer run-time configuration, reduced BOMs and smaller design areas. This document will show a few possible ways to utilize or generate analog signals on microcontrollers.