ATMEGA162-16MU - 16MHz AVR MCU 16KB Flash | Microchip
MPN: ATMEGA162-16MU β Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3.42 | $3.42 |
| 10 | $3.08 | $30.80 |
| 100 | $2.74 | $274.00 |
| 500 | $2.46 | $1,230.00 |
| 1,000 | $2.19 | $2,190.00 |
ATMEGA162-16MU Overview
An 8-bit AVR microcontroller is a single-chip computer built on the AVR enhanced RISC architecture, in which most of the 133 powerful instructions execute in a single clock cycle. Within the semiconductor hierarchy, it belongs to the microcontroller family: MCU -> embedded processor -> integrated circuit. This single-cycle execution lets designers optimize power consumption against processing speed, achieving throughput near 1 MIPS per MHz.
Key features include 16 KB self-programmable Flash with 10,000 write cycles, 512 B EEPROM with 100,000 write cycles, 35 programmable I/O lines, two 8-bit timers, one 16-bit timer, a USART, SPI serial interface, and an on-chip JTAG module supporting boundary-scan and debug. The extended voltage range of 2.7 V to 5.5 V permits direct battery and 5 V industrial rail operation.
Architecturally, the ATmega162 pairs an AVR core with separate program and data buses (Harvard architecture), enabling single-cycle instruction fetch and execution. Hardware multiply and rich peripheral set offload the CPU, while sleep modes (idle, power-down, power-save) reduce quiescent consumption for battery designs.
Typical applications include industrial control panels, embedded instrumentation, communication adapters with dual UART-style interfaces, and legacy ATmega161 board refresh - the ATmega162 is 100% pin compatible with the ATmega161 and can replace it on existing PCBs (fuse locations and electrical characteristics differ).
Design consideration: when replacing an ATmega161, re-verify fuse bit locations and electrical characteristics per the Microchip ATmega162 datasheet; also budget the MLF-44 exposed pad as a ground connection in the PCB layout.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in alternatives, pin-level guidance, and application notes not found in the manufacturer datasheet.
Drop-in alternatives for ATMEGA162-16MU β same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Variants in this series
Same-series models that are drop-in compatible with ATMEGA162-16MU (same form factor and footprint) β differing in Package, Instruction Set, Flash Program Memory, Performance.
Quick Comparison Tool β Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
ATMEGA162V-16MU
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―π Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA162-16MI
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―π Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA162-16MUR
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―β In Stock
$3.58 / Unit
View Datasheet βATMEGA161-16MI
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA162-16MU Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Core Processor | AVR |
| Core Size | 8-Bit |
| Speed | 16 MHz |
| Program Memory Size | 16 KB (8K x 16) FLASH |
| EEPROM Size | 512 B |
| RAM Size | 1 KB |
| Number of I/O | 35 |
| Supply Voltage Range | 2.7 V to 5.5 V |
| Oscillator Type | Internal |
| Peripherals | Brown-out Detect/Reset, POR, PWM, WDT |
| Connectivity | SPI, UART/USART |
| JTAG Interface | Yes (on-chip debug and boundary-scan) |
| Package | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44), 0.5 mm pitch |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C |
| RoHS Status | Compliant (GREEN, MO-220VKKD-3) |
| Instruction Set | 133 powerful instructions, most single-cycle |
ATMEGA162-16MU 44-vqfn (7x7 mm, mlf-44), 0.5 mm pitch Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for ATMEGA162-16MU (44-vqfn (7x7 mm, mlf-44), 0.5 mm pitch package). This digital IC includes GPIO, communication interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C), and power pins. Refer to the manufacturer datasheet for alternate pin functions and configuration options. Essential for embedded system design and PCB layout.
No detailed pinout data available for ATMEGA162-16MU.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
ATMEGA162-16MU is suitable for 6 applications: Industrial Control and Automation, Embedded Instrumentation and Test Equipment, Communication Adapters and Protocol Bridges, Legacy ATmega161 Board Refresh and EOL Migration, Battery-Powered and Low-Voltage Portable Devices, Hobby, Education, and Open-Source Embedded Platforms.
Industrial Control and Automation
The ATMEGA162-16MU fits industrial control panels because its 5.5 V maximum supply tolerates noisy 5 V logic rails, its 35 I/O lines drive relays, indicators, and switches directly, and its watchdog timer plus brown-out reset deliver the fault recovery behavior factory automation demands. In a typical panel controller, the MCU polls sensors over SPI, drives PWM outputs for actuators, and reports status on the UART at 16 MIPS of headroom - far more than the scanning workload requires. The 2.7 V floor also supports battery-backed sub-panels. Because the AVR core executes most of its 133 instructions in a single cycle, deterministic interrupt latency simplifies timing-critical I/O sequences without an RTOS.
Recommended
Embedded Instrumentation and Test Equipment
Bench instruments, data loggers, and handheld meters benefit from the ATMEGA162-16MU's JTAG on-chip debugging, which allows boundary-scan test and real-time debugging of the final assembled PCB - valuable when a measurement fault could be hardware or firmware. The 16 KB Flash accommodates calibration tables and menu frameworks, while 512 B EEPROM stores user calibration without external NVRAM. The SPI interface reads ADC front-ends, and the USART streams results to a PC. Running at 16 MHz from a 5 V rail, the device delivers sufficient arithmetic throughput for scaling, filtering, and display formatting at update rates typical of panel instrumentation.
Recommended
Communication Adapters and Protocol Bridges
The ATmega162 architecture was designed with an enhanced dual-programmable-UART-style I/O structure, making the ATMEGA162-16MU well suited to protocol converters and RS-232/RS-485 bridges where one port talks to a host and another to a field bus. The 16 MHz clock supports baud rates well beyond 115200 with low error using the on-chip baud-rate generator, and 1 KB SRAM buffers packet bursts. Because most AVR instructions execute in a single cycle, byte-level framing and CRC computation run comfortably within interrupt deadlines. The 2.7 V to 5.5 V range also allows the same board design to serve both 5 V industrial transceivers and 3.3 V logic front ends.
Recommended
Legacy ATmega161 Board Refresh and EOL Migration
The single strongest use case for the ATMEGA162-16MU is refreshing existing designs built on the ATmega161. According to the Microchip ATmega162 datasheet, the ATmega162 is 100% pin compatible with the ATmega161 and can replace it on current printed circuit boards without layout changes - a rare true drop-in migration path for aging AVR sockets. Firmware recompilation is required because fuse bit locations and electrical characteristics differ from the ATmega161; engineers must re-verify brown-out settings and clock fuses. Once migrated, the design gains higher throughput, more Flash (16 KB), and continued Microchip manufacturing support, eliminating obsolescence risk on legacy PCBs.
Recommended
Battery-Powered and Low-Voltage Portable Devices
With a 2.7 V operating floor and AVR sleep modes (idle, power-down, power-save), the ATMEGA162-16MU serves portable and battery-backed equipment such as hand-held readers, remote sensors, and backup controllers. Running from three NiMH cells or a regulated 3.3 V rail, the device executes near 1 MIPS per MHz, so designers can clock it down from 16 MHz to cut current proportionally while retaining the same code. The watchdog and power-on reset guarantee clean recovery after deep discharge events. For products that must operate down to 1.8 V, the pin-identical ATMEGA162V-16MU variant extends the supply range without any PCB change.
Recommended
Hobby, Education, and Open-Source Embedded Platforms
The ATmega162 retains an active open-source ecosystem: the MCUdude MajorCore GitHub project provides an Arduino hardware package for the ATmega162 and ATmega8515, enabling modern toolchain development on this classic core. Educational labs use the 44-pin VQFN/MLF device to teach AVR RISC architecture, ISP programming, and JTAG debugging on one chip, since the ATmega162 uniquely combines all three interfaces in a legacy-era part. The 35 I/O lines support breadboard-adapted carrier boards, and SPI/USART exercises map directly onto common lab peripherals. The 133-instruction single-cycle AVR instruction set remains a reference model for teaching embedded assembly.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for ATMEGA162-16MU β comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | ATMEGA162V-16MU | ATMEGA162-16MI | ATMEGA162-16MUR | ATMEGA161-16MI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44) | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44) - same | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44) - same | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44) - same | 44-VQFN (7x7 mm, MLF-44) - same |
| Brand | Microchip Technology (Atmel) | Microchip Technology (Atmel) | Microchip Technology (Atmel) | Microchip Technology (Atmel) | Microchip Technology (Atmel) |
| Max Speed | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 16 MHz | 16 MHz |
| Program Flash | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB |
| Supply Voltage Range | 2.7 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 2.7 V to 5.5 V | 2.7 V to 5.5 V | 2.7 V to 5.5 V |
| SRAM | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB |
| Pin Compatibility Notes | Reference (ATmega162 pinout) | 100% pin compatible | 100% pin compatible | 100% pin compatible | 100% pin compatible, fuse bits and electrical characteristics differ |
Key Differentiators
- True drop-in ATmega161 replacement (vs ATMEGA161-16MI)
- Low-voltage variant available in identical footprint (vs ATMEGA162V-16MU)
- Combined ISP + JTAG + dual-UART-style architecture (vs ATMEGA16-16AU)
- Honest trade-off: no ADC (vs ATMEGA164PA)
Design Notes
The MLF-44 (VQFN 7x7 mm) exposed die pad is the primary ground connection and must be soldered to a solid ground plane. Use an array of thermal vias (typically 4-9) under the pad to reduce ground inductance and improve heat spreading. The 0.5 mm pitch requires a no-clean or water-wash soldering profile with stencil apertures of roughly 0.25-0.28 mm to avoid bridging. Per Microchip MLF application guidance, keep the pad slightly larger than the die pad footprint for reliable fillet formation.
Decouple VCC with a 100 nF ceramic capacitor placed within 5 mm of the supply pin, plus a 4.7-10 uF bulk capacitor per board section. Enable the brown-out detector (BOD) via fuse for supplies above 2.7 V - without BOD, a slow supply decay during power-down can corrupt EEPROM contents, a documented AVR failure mode. If using EEPROM writes, respect the 100,000 cycle endurance by wear-leveling or throttling write frequency in logging applications.
When migrating firmware from ATmega161 to ATmega162, re-verify all fuse bit locations - the datasheet explicitly states fuse locations and electrical characteristics differ between the two 100% pin-compatible devices. Also confirm that the 16 MHz rating is valid for your supply voltage: at the low end of the 2.7 V range, derate clock frequency per the datasheet frequency-vs-VCC curve. JTAG pins default to JTAG function after reset; disable the JTAG-enable fuse (or reprogram in software via the JTD bit, written twice within four cycles) if those pins are needed as general I/O.
Route the SPI ISP lines (MOSI, MISO, SCK) with short traces and add a series resistor (typically 100 ohm) on SCK if the header is more than ~10 cm from the MCU, to damp ringing during programming. Keep XTAL1/XTAL2 crystal traces under 10 mm with guard ground for stable 16 MHz operation, and load capacitors per the crystal datasheet (typically 12-22 pF).
Compliance Information
GREEN package (MO-220VKKD-3, MLF-44) per FindIC listing indicates RoHS/lead-free. REACH, halogen-free, and conflict-minerals declarations not found in provided data - verify on Microchip compliance portal.
