How can a Non-Volatile Memory boost battery lifetime in battery-operated modules?

Man with a tablet

Battery-powered devices are everywhere today. From computers to mobiles phones, we use smart electronic applications every day, and expect them to offer high performance.

How can designers ensure their smart device addresses the expectations of end users in terms of performance without compromising battery lifetime? The memory selection is an essential step to consider when creating a smart object, as it has a direct impact on device power consumption.

This is particularly true in the case of tiny battery-operated modules, such as healthcare devices, smart meters, or environmental sensors, as they enable Over-The-Air updates, which require intensive energy consumption. To address these requirements, STMicroelectronics brings developers a high-density page EEPROM family, which reconciles performance with ultra-low-power consumption.

Page EEPROM: A power-saving design for intensive use, ideal for tiny IoT modules

The Page EEPROM is a power-efficient Non-Volatile Memory device (NVM), which offers more flexible design possibilities to better address market requirements.

A wide supply range expanding the battery options

Choosing the right batterie can make the difference in the overall performance of your application. With Page EEPROM, you can select the best battery according to your application need, thanks to its wide power supply range from 1.6 to 3.6V.

More performance for size-constrained applications

Battery-powered modules, such as medical devices or sensor modules, often require compact batteries, which are limited in power. Page EEPROM limits the current spikes to below 3mA, and trims the output buffer strength, providing a total current peak control over your application.

4 times lower

The Page EEPROM current consumption is 4 times lower than an ultra-low power NVM 32Mbit.

500 µA current &
a peak below 1mA

The page EEPROM consumption is very close to EEPROM 4 Mbit with a 500 µA current and a peak below 1mA

Low power consumption

The Page EEPROM saves power in your applications, as it requires very little power to operate. For instance, the page program instruction consumes 1.5 mA, which is 2.5 times less than other 32 Mbit NVMs on the market:

The ultra-low power Page EEPROM can therefore address the requirements of applications powered by tiny batteries, like hearing aids or smart watches. But how does it ensure a long-lasting battery?

Measured in Joules, energy is the unit used to assess how long a battery can last before being recharged. It is the combination of applied voltage, current consumption, and time. In the program operation example above, the Page EEPROM consumes 10 times less energy than other 32 Mbit NVMs for the same operation. In fact, the full operations embedded in the Page EEPROM products result in energy savings:

The energy consumption of the Page EEPROM for block erase is 800 times lower than other 32 Mbit NVMs. This is thanks to very low current consumption combined with a very fast erase operation.

Optimized idle mode consumption

Today, most low-power applications are punctuated by short bursts of intense activity, followed by long periods of idle time. The Page EEPROM’s deep power mode optimizes power conservation by reducing the current consumption below 1µA when the memory is not activated.

Designed to enable high performance in low-power applications, the Page EEPROM addresses any type of application powered by battery. It reduces energy dissipation and reaches one of the lowest power consumptions in the NVM market.