ATSAMC21-XPRO - SAM C21 Xplained Pro Evaluation Kit | Microchip
MPN: ATSAMC21-XPRO ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $71.8 | $71.80 |
| 10 | $64.62 | $646.20 |
| 50 | $57.44 | $2,872.00 |
| 100 | $50.26 | $5,026.00 |
| 500 | $43.08 | $21,540.00 |
ATSAMC21-XPRO Overview
An evaluation board (also called a development kit or Xplained Pro board) is a hardware platform integrating a target MCU, programming/debug interface, extension headers, and power conditioning so engineers can prototype firmware, evaluate peripherals, and connect MikroElektronika click boards without designing custom PCB hardware first. Evaluation boards sit at the bottom of the embedded-development hardware hierarchy: silicon -> MCU module/package -> evaluation board -> prototype PCB -> production PCB. They accelerate time-to-prototype because the schematic, BOM, and Gerbers are reference designs validated by the silicon vendor.
The ATSAMC21-XPRO exposes ATSAMC21J18A peripherals through Xplained Pro extension headers (EXT1/EXT2/EXT3), an on-board Embedded Debugger (EDBG) providing CMSIS-DAP over USB, a current-measurement header for power profiling, and QTouch buttons. The board is supported by Atmel Studio / Microchip MPLAB X IDE, ASF (Atmel Software Framework), and a growing list of Harmony 3 drivers. Compared with lower-tier dev kits, the Xplained Pro tier integrates production-grade debug and standardized pinouts so designs are portable across other SAM-family boards (SAMD, SAME, SAMP).
Typical applications include industrial CAN-FD node prototyping, motor-control reference designs (TC27 companion boards), 5V sensor-hub prototyping, and academic Cortex-M0+ firmware training. The board's 5V-tolerant GPIO and CAN-FD peripheral make it especially relevant for automotive and industrial-grade embedded learning where 3.3V-only kits fall short. Engineers migrating from SAM D20/D21 boards will find familiar SERCOM configurations and identical linear address maps, easing code reuse.
When prototyping, route power through the current-measurement header to characterize active and sleep current of the ATSAMC21J18A; remember the on-board EDBG draws current too and must be accounted for in low-power benchmarks. Use Xplained Pro extension boards (ATIO1-XPRO, ATCAN-XPRO) to expand CAN, Ethernet, or IO coverage without redesigning the base board.
Drop-in alternatives for ATSAMC21-XPRO — 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 ATSAMC21-XPRO (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Target MCU, Debug Interface, Extension Headers, Product Type, SRAM.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
ATSAMC21N-XPRO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified✓ In Stock
$52.75 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATSAMDC21-XPRO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATSAMD21-XPRO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified✓ In Stock
$36.25 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATSAME54-XPRO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified✓ In Stock
$80.4 / Unit
View Datasheet →ATSAMC20-XPRO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
NUCLEO-F072RB
✅ Drop-In📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATSAMC21-XPRO Specifications (manufacturer-published)
| Product Type | Evaluation / Development Board |
| Target MCU | ATSAMC21J18A |
| Core Processor | ARM Cortex-M0+ 32-bit |
| Core Architecture | ARMv6-M |
| On-board Flash (target MCU) | 256 KB |
| On-board SRAM (target MCU) | 32 KB |
| Supply Voltage (board) | 5V via USB or external |
| Digital I/O Voltage | 5V tolerant |
| On-board Debugger | EDBG (CMSIS-DAP / DGI / CDC) |
| Debug Interface | USB (micro-B) to host PC |
| Extension Headers | 3x Xplained Pro (EXT1, EXT2, EXT3) |
| Current Measurement Header | 1x2 100 mil, marked MCU current |
| Buttons | Reset + 2x QTouch |
| LEDs | Power LED + Status LED + User LED |
| On-board MCU Package | 64-pin TQFP / VQFN-style |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to +70C (commercial dev kit) |
ATSAMC21-XPRO Interfaces & Connectors
ATSAMC21-XPRO exposes the following interfaces and connectors as published by the manufacturer: Power Input. Expansion header pinout, connector pin numbering, and electrical limits are defined in the manufacturer documentation.
| Power Input | 5V via USB or external |
Refer to the manufacturer documentation for the full expansion header pinout and connector pin numbering.
Power & Thermal Characteristics
| Power Input | 5V via USB or external |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to +70C (commercial dev kit) |
Power input and thermal parameters for ATSAMC21-XPRO as published by the manufacturer.
Typical Applications
ATSAMC21-XPRO is suitable for 6 applications: Industrial CAN-FD Sensor Node Prototyping, 5V Sensor Hub and HMI Prototyping, Motor Control Reference Design (FOC / BLDC), Academic Cortex-M0+ Firmware Training, Battery-Connected Wireless Sensor Nodes, Automotive ECU Pre-Prototyping (Indoor Bench Tests).
Industrial CAN-FD Sensor Node Prototyping
The ATSAMC21-XPRO is a strong fit for industrial CAN-FD sensor-node prototyping because the on-board ATSAMC21J18A MCU integrates a Bosch M_CAN peripheral that supports both classic CAN 2.0B and CAN-FD with data rates up to 1 Mbit/s. The 5V-tolerant IO lets the board interface directly with industrial 5V sensors, eliminating level shifters. The Xplained Pro extension headers expose CAN pins so an external SN65HVD23x or TJA1057 transceiver pair can drive a real bus. The on-board EDBG provides deterministic firmware debugging of bus-off and error-frame handling. Compared with 3.3V-only kits, the ATSAMC21-XPRO shortens BOM, fits standard industrial cabinets, and pairs well with the ATCAN-XPRO click extension for bus diagnostics.
Recommended
5V Sensor Hub and HMI Prototyping
For 5V sensor-hub prototyping and human-machine interface (HMI) work, the ATSAMC21-XPRO delivers what most 3.3V-only Cortex-M kits cannot: direct GPIO drive to 5V logic-level sensors, relays, and LED arrays. The 6 SERCOM instances on the ATSAMC21J18A expose UART, SPI, TWI (I2C), and one I2S, with Xplained Pro click boards adding displays, accelerometers, and environmental sensors. Designers reading analog sensors benefit from the 20-channel 12-bit ADC with hardware averaging and window compare. The 5V tolerance prevents level-mismatch damage during prototyping, cutting dev-cycle burn-out returns. A typical build uses one SERCOM for a UART GPS module, two for SPI sensors, and the on-chip touch controller for capacitive buttons on the HMI panel.
Recommended
Motor Control Reference Design (FOC / BLDC)
The ATSAMC21-XPRO serves as the control-side companion to Microchip's ATSAMC21MOTOR BLDC/PMSM motor-control reference design. The on-board ATSAMC21J18A's TC (Timer Counter) instances generate center-aligned PWM with hardware dead-time insertion needed for field-oriented control (FOC); the integrated PWM channels support up to 8 complementary pairs suitable for dual-H-bridge or 3-phase inverter power stages. The Cortex-M0+ runs Microchip's MCC-generated FOC algorithms in real time, and the SWD debug path lets engineers step through SVM, Clarke/Park transforms, and SMO observer code. Evaluation tracks typically pair the ATSAMC21-XPRO with a TC27 companion board carrying the gate drivers; this keeps the control firmware path identical to production designs based on ATSAMC21N-XPRO upgrades.
Recommended
Academic Cortex-M0+ Firmware Training
The ATSAMC21-XPRO is an excellent teaching platform for Cortex-M0+ firmware development because it exposes 32-bit ARM architecture in an accessible through-hole-friendly Xplained Pro form factor for student benches. ASF and Harmony 3 provide incremental driver examples for GPIO, USART, ADC, TC, and SERCOM, so students progress from blinking LEDs to CAN-FD nodes in one semester. The on-board EDBG supports drag-and-drop programming via the bootloader, removing the friction of external SWD programmers in classroom settings. Each dev kit includes a current-measurement header for power-profiling labs. Compared with bare Arduino, the ATSAMC21-XPRO teaches CMSIS-level register manipulation and HAL-free peripheral configuration, skills that translate to production embedded roles.
Recommended
Battery-Connected Wireless Sensor Nodes
Although typically advertised for industrial use, the ATSAMC21-XPRO also supports battery-connected wireless sensor node prototyping when paired with Mikroelektronika LoRa, BLE, or sub-GHz click boards. The ATSAMC21J18A's low-power SleepWalking with Event System lets the MCU wake on I/O without CPU intervention, achieving <1 uA standby current. The on-board EDBG debugger lets developers iterate on sleep-mode code, then characterize current draw through the included current-measurement header. Typical builds add an ATSAM-R21-XPRO or custom wireless SOC via the EXT3 SPI header. For long-life field deployments, profile energy per event and migrate the firmware to a lower-pin-count SAM C21 in production.
Recommended
Automotive ECU Pre-Prototyping (Indoor Bench Tests)
Automotive ECU teams use the ATSAMC21-XPRO to bench-prototype 5V-tolerant automotive periphery (LIN bus, CAN-FD, body controllers) before committing to AEC-Q100-qualified SAM C21 modules. The ATSAMC21J18A gives designers near-1:1 register compatibility with later automotive-grade SAM C20/21 die, while the dev kit's QTouch buttons, LEDs, and USB virtual COM accelerate HIL bench testing. It is not a drop-in for an automotive ECU on the road (the kit is only commercial-grade 0C to +70C and not AEC-Q100), but it lets firmware teams validate code paths, CAN-FD stacks, and bootloaders in indoor benches. Production deployment must migrate to qualified parts such as ATSAMC20G16A-AUT or ATSAMC21G18A-AUT housed on production PCBs.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for ATSAMC21-XPRO — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | ATSAMC21N-XPRO | ATSAMDC21-XPRO | ATSAMD21-XPRO | ATSAME54-XPRO | ATSAMC20-XPRO | NUCLEO-F072RB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | STMicroelectronics |
| Package / Form Factor | Xplained Pro board | Xplained Pro board | Xplained Pro board | Xplained Pro board | Xplained Pro board | Xplained Pro board | Nucleo-64 (Arduino Uno shield form factor) |
| Target MCU Core | Cortex-M0+ | Cortex-M0+ | Cortex-M0+ | Cortex-M0+ | Cortex-M4 with FPU | Cortex-M0+ | Cortex-M0+ |
| Target MCU Part | ATSAMC21J18A | ATSAMC21N18A | ATSAMDC21J18A | ATSAMD21J18A | ATSAME54P20A | ATSAMC20J18A | STM32F072RB |
| Flash | 256 KB | 256 KB | 256 KB | 256 KB | 1024 KB | 256 KB | 128 KB |
| 5V Tolerant IO | Yes | Yes | Yes | No (3.3V) | No | Yes | 5V-tolerant on true open-drain pins |
| CAN-FD Peripheral | Yes | Yes (multiple) | Yes | No | Yes (CAN-FD) | No | Yes |
| On-board Debugger | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | EDBG CMSIS-DAP | ST-LINK V2-1 |
Key Differentiators
- 5V-tolerant GPIO and CAN-FD on the same kit (vs ATSAMD21-XPRO)
- On-board EDBG debugger with measurement header (vs NUCLEO-F072RB)
- Same Xplained Pro form factor across the SAM family (vs NUCLEO-F072RB)
- Field-validated ASF / Harmony 3 firmware libraries (vs ATSAME54-XPRO)
Design Notes
Estimated: At VIN=5V USB and target MCU running at 48 MHz with all peripherals enabled, the ATSAMC21-XPRO draws approximately 80-120 mA, dominated by the EDBG debugger (estimated 30-50 mA) and the target MCU (estimated 20-30 mA active / 5 uA in SleepWalking standby). For accurate low-power benchmarking, route power through the 2-pin MCU current-measurement header to bypass the EDBG supply, since the debugger continues to draw even when the target MCU is sleeping.
Use the Xplained Pro extension headers EXT1, EXT2, and EXT3 as designed by Microchip: standard MikroElektronika click pinout (SPI, UART, I2C, PWM, GPIO, INT, RST, +5V, GND). When connecting a custom shield rather than a click board, follow the 1x20 right-angle 2.54 mm pin header arrangement; never stack more than 3 boards to keep total SPI bus capacitance below 30 pF for reliable 20 MHz transfer.
For 5V-tolerant designs, the ATSAMC21J18A inputs clamp only up to 5.5 V; anything higher (including 12V/24V industrial transients) requires an external TVS and series resistor. Keep CAN bus traces within 100 mm differential length and 100 ohm impedance to meet ISO 11898-2; if your CAN bus extends beyond 1 m, add a TJA1057 or similar isolated transceiver instead of relying on the on-board MCU pads.
Do not plug a 5V Arduino Uno into the Xplained Pro click headers without checking the SERCOM and IO voltage tolerance - the C21 is 5V-tolerant on input, but injecting 5V into a 3.3V click board will damage that board. Also note that the on-board EDBG enumerates as a USB mass storage (drag-and-drop bootloader) AND a CDC ACM serial COM port; some hosts confuse the two. Disable the mass-storage interface in MPLAB X if conflicts occur.
Estimated: At full 5V IO drive into 8x 25 mA LED loads and 48 MHz core, the ATSAMC21J18A dissipates roughly 0.4-0.6 W; the 64-pin TQFP package theta_JA is estimated 40-50 C/W for the dev kit FR-4 layout, producing a 20-30 C junction rise above ambient. The kit operates safely below 70 C ambient; for higher ambient enclosures, downgrade IO drive strength or clock speed. The board has no heatsink and is intended for indoor use only.
Compliance Information
RoHS and REACH compliance per Microchip product environmental disclosures. Dev kit is commercial-grade 0C to +70C and not AEC-Q100 qualified; production automotive designs must use ATSAMC20/21G-AUT variants.
