Thinning chip is getting better

With Freescale's new chips, the smart card will be smarter and the fitness bracelet will be more comfortable to wear.

Freescale's latest chip thickness for low-power devices such as payment cards, wearable devices, and medical sensors is only 0.34 millimeters, which is applicable to IoT devices.

PCWorld said that K22 is an MCU (microcontroller unit), built-in memory, can be programmed to complete a specific task. The MCU's processing power is not as powerful as that of a microprocessor with a full operating system such as PCs and mobile phones equipped with display screens, but it can be used for smaller-sized specialized devices that do not need to be charged every day. Steven Tateosian, Freescale’s Microcontroller Systems Group Manager, said that some MCUs include wireless technologies such as Bluetooth LowEnergy.

Thin-leaf chips make fitness bracelets more comfortable. The thickness of the new chips is only about half that of current MCU chips, and the size is 4.1X3.6mm. This thin thickness makes the K22 suitable for payment and access cards, and their thickness is about 0.75 mm. Tatiusian said that this allows card manufacturers to add more features without increasing the thickness of the product.

PCWorld claims that the processing power and memory of the MCU chip can enhance the security features of standard cards. For example, an office door card stores encrypted information of cardholders and their privileges. Tatiusian said that this helps to achieve more complex, policy-based access control than current magnetic stripe cards or RFID cards.

This chip enables payment cards equipped with electronic ink (EInk) screens to display more information, including information sent by card issuers. Tatiusian said that when a store queues up for a check, the cardholder can enter a PIN code or draw a graphic on the card's capacitive touch surface. The MCU's computing power will lay the foundation for this.

Thin-leaf chip makes fitness bracelet more comfortable for IoT devices PCWorld pointed out that in other types of devices, thinner chips will give designers more flexibility. It is easier to bend than a thicker MCU and is small enough to fit in products that bend and stretch. Tatiusian said that one potential application is a blood glucose monitor attached to a stretchable electronic patch on the surface of the skin. The blood glucose monitor can even be implanted subcutaneously in the patient. In wearable devices such as smart watches, thinner parts make the finished product smaller.

Tatiusian said that at present, equipment manufacturers have been able to purchase K22 in large quantities to produce products in batches at a price comparable to that of relatively thick and functionally similar chips. Freescale also plans to reduce the thickness of other products in the Kinetis family of MCUs.