Introduction

Core Independent Peripherals (CIPs) are specially designed hardware blocks inside a microcontroller (MCU) that add new capabilities, reduce code and improve system performance. Thanks to CIPs, 8-bit microcontrollers can punch well above their weight and tackle applications that normally would require a substantial upgrade in CPU performance. This application note will showcase an example of this by discussing the design elements, decisions and logic that went into building a Peltier Cooled Metal Plate with only one microcontroller: a 20-pin PIC16F17146.

An overview of the application’s design, along with the schematics, PCB layouts and CAD files for the prototype, is available at the MPLAB® Discover link below.