PIC16LF18426-E/JQ - 8-Bit XLP MCU 32MHz 28KB Flash | Microchip
MPN: PIC16LF18426-E/JQ ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1.99 | $1.99 |
| 10 | $1.79 | $17.90 |
| 100 | $1.62 | $162.00 |
| 500 | $1.48 | $740.00 |
| 1,000 | $1.32 | $1,320.00 |
PIC16LF18426-E/JQ Overview
An 8-bit microcontroller is a single-chip computer built around an 8-bit data path, optimized for deterministic real-time control, low power, and cost-sensitive embedded designs. Within the broader taxonomy, PIC16LF18426 sits under PIC microcontroller -> 8-bit MCU -> microcontroller unit -> integrated circuit -> semiconductor. The "LF" prefix denotes the eXtreme Low-Power (XLP) process variant, supporting operation from 1.8 V to 3.6 V with nanoWatt sleep currents in the order of tens of nanoamps, while the non-LF "F" variant extends to 5.5 V.
Key features of the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ include active current consumption below 1 mA at 32 MHz with 3.3 V VDD, deep sleep currents below 100 nA with peripheral retention via the Windowed Watchdog Timer (WWDT), and 4 KB of self-programmable Flash. The device offers up to 17 I/O pins, internal 32 kHz and 32 MHz oscillators, and a temperature-indicator module that simplifies thermal monitoring. AEC-Q100 qualification is available on selected part numbers for automotive-grade designs.
The PIC16LF18426 family uses a 14-bit instruction word RISC architecture with a single-cycle hardware multiplier, allowing many CIP operations to run independently of the CPU. This produces deterministic latency for sensor front-ends while keeping CPU wake time short - a critical balance for battery-powered edge devices.
Typical applications include battery-powered IoT sensor nodes, low-power remote controls, wearable health and fitness devices, white-goods and appliance controllers, automotive body and lighting ECUs (AEC-Q100 parts), and industrial sensor transmitters. The combination of ADCC, ZCD, CWG, and PWMs enables single-chip control loops previously requiring dedicated analog ASICs.
Design consideration: when migrating from a 5V PIC16F18426 to the 3.3V PIC16LF18426, verify that all peripherals operate at the lower rail - the LF device is not 5V tolerant on I/O. A simple BOM change to a 3.3V LDO is usually sufficient. Always place a 100 nF decoupling capacitor within 3 mm of VDD and a 10 uF bulk capacitor near the package.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, parametric drop-in alternatives, and practical design notes that complement the Microchip datasheet, helping engineers select, source, and apply the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ efficiently.
Drop-in alternatives for PIC16LF18426-E/JQ — 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 PIC16LF18426-E/JQ (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, I/O Pins, Operating Temperature, DAC, Core Independent Peripherals.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
PIC16F18426-I/JQ
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1.28 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16LF18425-E/JQ
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1.18 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16LF18424-E/JQ
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$0.51 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16LF18326-E/JQ
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$0.99 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16LF18325-E/JQVAO
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1.95 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16F18326-E/JQ
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1.02 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC16LF18426-E/JQ Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Core Architecture | PIC 8-bit enhanced mid-range |
| CPU Speed | 32 MHz (max) |
| Program Memory (Flash) | 28 KB (16K x 14 words) |
| SRAM | 2 KB |
| EEPROM | 256 bytes |
| Supply Voltage (VDD) | 1.8 V to 3.6 V |
| Operating Temperature | -40 C to +125 C (E = extended) |
| Package | 16-pin UQFN-EP, 4 x 4 mm |
| I/O Pins | Up to 17 |
| DAC | 5-bit / 8-bit |
| Comparators | 2 |
| PWM Channels | 2 x 10-bit |
| Communication | EUSART, SPI, I2C |
| Core Independent Peripherals | CWG, ZCD, ADCC, NCO, WWDT |
| Low-Power Modes | XLP nanoWatt technology, sleep currents <100 nA |
| Internal Oscillator | 32 kHz LF and 32 MHz HF |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
PIC16LF18426-E/JQ Pin Configuration
| Pin 1 | RA5 — Bidirectional I/O; analog input; ICSPDAT |
| Pin 2 | RA4 — Bidirectional I/O; analog input |
| Pin 3 | RA3/MCLR — Input only or Master Clear (reset); weak pull-up |
| Pin 4 | RA2 — Bidirectional I/O; analog input |
| Pin 5 | RA1 — Bidirectional I/O; analog input |
| Pin 6 | RA0 — Bidirectional I/O; analog input |
| Pin 7 | VSS — Ground reference |
| Pin 8 | RC5 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 9 | RC4 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 10 | RC3 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 11 | RC2 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 12 | RC1 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 13 | RC0 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 14 | VDD — Positive supply voltage (1.8 V to 3.6 V) |
| Pin 15 | RA7 — Bidirectional I/O; ICSPCLK |
| Pin 16 | RA6 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 17 | EP — Exposed pad - thermal/ground, must be soldered to VSS plane |
Typical Applications
PIC16LF18426-E/JQ is suitable for 6 applications: Battery-Powered IoT Sensor Node, Wearable Health and Fitness Device, Automotive Body and Lighting ECU, Industrial 4-20 mA Loop-Powered Sensor Transmitter, Smart Home Wireless Sensor (Zigbee/BLE End-Device), White Goods and Appliance User Interface.
Battery-Powered IoT Sensor Node
The PIC16LF18426-E/JQ is ideally suited for battery-powered IoT sensor nodes that must operate for years on a single coin cell or 2xAA battery. Its 32 MHz enhanced mid-range core executes sensor reads in microseconds before returning to sleep, while the LF XLP technology keeps deep-sleep currents under 100 nA with peripheral retention via the Windowed Watchdog Timer. The integrated 12-bit ADCC with computation performs oversampling and averaging autonomously, freeing the CPU to remain asleep for 99% of the duty cycle. The 28 KB Flash accommodates BLE/Zigbee/LoRa stack shims plus application logic, and the 16-pin UQFN-EP 4x4 mm package fits inside sensor housings as small as 8x8 mm. A typical implementation reads a temperature or humidity sensor every 10 seconds, transmits a packet via EUSART to an attached radio module, and sleeps - achieving average current of 5-15 uA and a battery life of 3-5 years on a single CR2032.
Recommended
Wearable Health and Fitness Device
For wrist-worn fitness trackers, heart-rate straps, and continuous glucose monitor (CGM) pods, the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ delivers the right mix of low power, small footprint, and analog integration. Its 1.8-3.6 V operating range aligns with Li-ion coin cells, and the 12-bit ADCC simultaneously samples photoplethysmography (PPG) and bio-impedance signals without external analog front-end ICs. The 5-bit DAC drives the LED bias for the PPG sensor, while the two comparators detect battery low-voltage and signal saturation events in hardware, bypassing the CPU. Sleep current below 100 nA preserves battery during standby, and the 16-pin UQFN-EP occupies under 16 mm squared of PCB area - small enough for a 10 mm watch module. The -40 C to +125 C extended temperature range supports skin-contact wearable use cases including outdoor sports and continuous body-temperature monitoring.
Recommended
Automotive Body and Lighting ECU
In non-safety automotive subsystems such as interior lighting controllers, RGB ambient LED drivers, seat-occupancy sensors, and HVAC flap actuators, the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ provides the CIP integration and PWM resolution required to reduce external component count. The CWG (Complementary Waveform Generator) produces complementary PWM outputs with programmable dead-band for driving N-channel MOSFET half-bridges that switch LED strings or DC motors - eliminating the need for an external gate-driver IC in many cases. The ZCD (Zero-Cross Detect) detects AC-line zero crossings for triac-based dimming without an optocoupler in low-voltage lighting controllers. AEC-Q100 qualified variants of the PIC16F18426 family share the same 16-pin UQFN-EP footprint, enabling drop-in upgrade to the automotive grade. Operating from -40 C to +125 C and tolerating 5 V supply rails (F variant), this MCU fits comfortably under the hood for non-safety automotive modules.
Recommended
Industrial 4-20 mA Loop-Powered Sensor Transmitter
Two-wire 4-20 mA current-loop transmitters derive all operating power from the loop itself, so the controller must consume well under 3.5 mA total - a target the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ meets handily with its XLP sleep modes. Its 12-bit ADCC digitizes bridge pressure sensors or RTD inputs with 1 LSB resolution while consuming under 250 uA active. The on-chip 5-bit DAC generates the 4-20 mA span calibration, and the 10-bit PWM with on-chip timer can be smoothed to provide the loop current output directly, removing a dedicated DAC-to-current converter IC. The 1.8 V minimum VDD allows operation down to 6 V loop voltage with a simple LDO. The extended -40 C to +125 C temperature range covers outdoor process-control installations. A typical loop transmitter PCB fits in a 12 mm diameter cylindrical housing thanks to the 16-pin UQFN-EP 4x4 mm MCU footprint.
Recommended
Smart Home Wireless Sensor (Zigbee/BLE End-Device)
Zigbee Green Power and Bluetooth Low Energy end-device designs rely on sleepy MCUs that wake only when a button press or sensor event occurs. The PIC16LF18426-E/JQ is a strong fit: its deep-sleep current below 100 nA preserves coin-cell life for years, while its EUSART/SPI/I2C peripherals connect directly to common radio modules such as the Microchip SAM R34 or third-party BLE SoCs in companion-processor configurations. The on-chip 12-bit ADCC with hardware oversampling reads temperature, humidity, or door-switch sensors without waking the CPU for averaging. The CWG generates PWM-controlled buzz tones for user feedback. The 28 KB Flash accommodates Zigbee GP 1.1 stack libraries plus application code, and the 16-pin UQFN-EP 4x4 mm package fits on a CR2032 coin-cell sensor board as small as 18 mm diameter.
Recommended
White Goods and Appliance User Interface
Refrigerator displays, washing-machine control panels, microwave ovens, and dishwasher HMI boards all need a low-cost MCU with PWM-driven beepers, capacitive-touch sensing, and segmented LCD or LED display drive. The PIC16LF18426-E/JQ fits these white-goods designs with its 17 I/O pins handling matrix keypads up to 4x4, its 10-bit PWM producing beeper tones, its two comparators for water-level or door-switch detection, and its EUSART for connecting to a main inverter controller board. The on-chip temperature indicator simplifies overtemperature shutdown without an external sensor. The 1.8-3.6 V LF variant suits 3.3 V regulated supplies; for legacy 5 V appliances the F variant PIC16F18426 provides drop-in compatibility in the same 16-UQFN-EP footprint. The extended temperature range supports appliance environments that can reach 70 C inside a sealed enclosure.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for PIC16LF18426-E/JQ — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | PIC16F18426-I/JQ | PIC16LF18425-E/JQ | PIC16LF18424-E/JQ | PIC16LF18326-E/JQ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 16-UQFN-EP 4x4 mm | 16-UQFN-EP 4x4 mm - same | 16-UQFN-EP 4x4 mm - same | 16-UQFN-EP 4x4 mm - same | 16-UQFN-EP 4x4 mm - same |
| Brand | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology |
| Program Flash | 28 KB | 28 KB | 14 KB | 7 KB | 28 KB |
| SRAM | 2 KB | 2 KB | 2 KB | 2 KB | 2 KB |
| VDD Range | 1.8 V to 3.6 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 3.6 V | 1.8 V to 3.6 V | 1.8 V to 3.6 V |
| ADC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 10-bit ADC |
| CWG/ZCD | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Temperature Grade | -40 C to +125 C (E) | -40 C to +85 C (I) | -40 C to +125 C (E) | -40 C to +125 C (E) | -40 C to +125 C (E) |
Key Differentiators
- 12-bit ADCC with computation versus older 10-bit ADC (vs PIC16LF18326-E/JQ)
- 28 KB Flash versus lower-density same-package variants (vs PIC16LF18425-E/JQ (14 KB) and PIC16LF18424-E/JQ (7 KB))
- eXtreme Low-Power (XLP) process node with <100 nA deep sleep (vs PIC16F18426-I/JQ)
Design Notes
Decoupling: place a 100 nF X7R ceramic capacitor within 3 mm of the VDD pin (pin 14) and a 10 uF X5R bulk capacitor near the package. Tie the exposed pad (EP) to a clean VSS plane with at least 4 thermal vias to the inner ground layer. For battery-powered designs, add a 10 uF tantalum or polymer bulk capacitor at the battery terminals to handle peak transmit-current bursts from attached radio modules.
Voltage-mismatch pitfall: the PIC16LF18426-E/JQ is NOT 5 V tolerant. Applying 5 V to any I/O pin (or VDD) on the LF variant can permanently damage the Flash memory and I/O cells. If your design must run from 5 V, choose the PIC16F18426-I/JQ (1.8-5.5 V) in the same 16-UQFN-EP package - the pinout is identical, so no PCB change is required.
ICSP routing: route ICSPDAT (pin 1 / RA5) and ICSPCLK (pin 15 / RA7) as a 2-wire bus with 100-ohm series resistors placed near the MCU. Keep these traces short (<50 mm) and avoid running parallel to switching-power traces. Microchip recommends a 4-pin header (ICSPDAT, ICSPCLK, VDD, VSS) for production programming access. If you do not need ICSP, leave RA5 and RA7 as standard GPIO.
The 16-UQFN-EP package relies on the exposed pad for thermal dissipation. Solder the EP to a copper pad of at least 8 mm squared on the top layer and stitch 6-8 thermal vias (0.3 mm drill) to the inner VSS plane. At 32 MHz / 3.3 V the PIC16LF18426 dissipates under 20 mW, so thermal management is straightforward - the EP requirement is mostly for ground reference and assembly solder-wetting quality.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliant per Microchip product page. -E suffix denotes extended -40 C to +125 C temperature range. AEC-Q100 qualification is available on selected PIC16F18426 (F-variant) part numbers; the LF part is generally used in industrial and consumer applications. For automotive AEC-Q100, use the F variant or contact your Microchip FAE.
