8 Getting Started with PIC32CM
Getting started with the PIC32CM MCUs includes obtaining product information, setting up a development environment, and exploring example projects.
PIC32CM Products and Collaterals
Microchip’s official website has product pages dedicated for each MCU family. The PIC32CM families are included on the Arm Cortex-based MCUs product page. This page includes links to specific family product pages and reference guides for all 32-bit MCU products.
- Product Pages: Arm® Cortex®-Based Microcontrollers
- Collaterals and Solutions:
Each family also provides starter evaluation kits, such as the Curiosity Nano boards. These boards come with basic hardware interfaces and onboard programmers and debuggers. For more information on Curiosity Nano development, refer to the Curiosity Nano Development Platform.
Development Tools
The MPLAB development ecosystem supports customers through all stages of embedded design, from discovery to production. It incorporates compilers, simulation tools, libraries, code examples, and other resources. The MPLAB toolchain is available in Visual Studio Code (VS Code) through the MPLAB Tools for VS Code, enabling code development in its expansive ecosystem. The following tools integrated within MPLAB are required for PIC32CM development:
- MPLAB XC32 Compiler for C/C++ development on 32-bit MCUs
- MPLAB Code Configurator (MCC) and MPLAB Harmony for generating firmware, including peripheral drivers, middleware, and example applications
PIC16F/PIC18F uses a different variation of MPLAB tools for code development. For a detailed guide on tool migration, refer to the Migration Guide from AVR and PIC16/18F to PIC32CM Development Tools Ecosystem.
Example Projects
The MPLAB® Discover and Microchip GitHub offer a vast selection of example code and applications. Browse these websites to find examples for the PIC32CM MCUs.
- MPLAB Discover references: PIC32CM Code Examples
- MPLAB Harmony GitHub: PIC32CM Reference Applications