2.1.1 Low-Power Technology

All of the devices in the PIC18F27/47Q10 family incorporate a range of features that can significantly reduce power consumption during operation. Key items include:

  • Alternate Run modes: By clocking the microcontroller from the secondary oscillator or the internal oscillator block, power consumption during code execution can be reduced by as much as 90%.
  • Multiple Idle modes: The controller can also run with its CPU core disabled but the peripherals are still active. In these states, power consumption can be reduced even further, to as little as 4% of normal operation requirements.
  • On-the-fly mode switching: The Power-Managed modes are invoked by user code during operation, allowing the user to incorporate power-saving ideas into their application’s software design.
  • Peripheral Module Disable: Modules that are not being used in the code can be selectively disabled using the PMD module. This further reduces the power consumption.