PIC18F15Q40-E/P - 8-bit 64MHz 32KB Flash MCU | Microchip
MPN: PIC18F15Q40-E/P ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1.85 | $1.85 |
| 10 | $1.66 | $16.60 |
| 100 | $1.48 | $148.00 |
| 500 | $1.32 | $660.00 |
| 1,000 | $1.18 | $1,180.00 |
PIC18F15Q40-E/P Overview
What is a PIC microcontroller? A PIC (Peripheral Interface Controller) microcontroller is a compact, low-cost, self-contained computer-on-a-chip that integrates a CPU core, non-volatile program memory, working RAM, EEPROM, and a rich set of analog and digital peripherals into a single IC. PIC MCUs sit within the broader embedded microcontroller hierarchy (8-bit MCU -> microcontroller -> embedded processor -> semiconductor), and the PIC18 family is Microchip's mainstream 8-bit line balancing cost, performance, peripheral integration, and code density via an enhanced 16-bit instruction word.
Key differentiating features of the PIC18F15Q40 include a 12-bit ADC with Computation (ADCC) for automated averaging, threshold detection, and filtering; dual 8-bit DACs for analog output generation; 16-bit PWMs with multiple modes for motor, lighting, and power control; Direct Memory Access (DMA) to offload CPU data movement; Configurable Logic Cells (CLC) for hardware glue logic; and Peripheral Pin Select (PPS) for flexible signal routing. The device also offers UART, SPI, and I2C communications.
Architecturally, the PIC18F15Q40 uses an enhanced Harvard architecture with separate program and data buses, hardware multiply, and a 31-level deep hardware stack. The 12-bit ADCC provides oversampling and burst-averaging modes, enabling high effective resolution. The combination of DMA, CLC, and PPS creates a deterministic, low-CPU-overhead platform ideal for closed-loop control.
Typical applications include sensor signal conditioning, LED lighting control, low-cost motor control, battery management front-ends, and industrial IoT edge nodes. The wide temperature range and PPS flexibility make it a fit for harsh industrial environments. When designing, allocate careful PCB attention to the AGND/AVDD analog rails if using the ADCC; place the recommended 0.1uF + bulk decoupling within 5mm of each VDD pin and follow Microchip AN4553 for ADCC layout practices.
Drop-in alternatives for PIC18F15Q40-E/P — 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 PIC18F15Q40-E/P (same form factor and footprint) — differing in DAC, PWM, ADC, Package, Program Memory (Flash).
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
PIC18F14Q40-E/P
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1.18 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC18F15Q40-I/P
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$2.05 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC18F14Q40-I/P
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified✓ In Stock
$0.89 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC18F05Q40-E/P
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
PIC18F06Q40-E/P
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
PIC18F14Q40-E/SO
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ Specs Unverified✓ In Stock
$1.18 / Unit
View Datasheet →PIC18F15Q40-E/P Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Core Architecture | PIC18 (8-bit RISC, enhanced Harvard) |
| Maximum CPU Frequency | 64 MHz |
| Program Memory (Flash) | 32 KB |
| Data SRAM | 2 KB |
| Data EEPROM | 512 bytes |
| ADC | 12-bit with Computation (ADCC) |
| DAC | 8-bit x 2 |
| PWM | 16-bit |
| DMA | Yes |
| Configurable Logic Cells (CLC) | Yes |
| Peripheral Pin Select (PPS) | Yes |
| Communication Interfaces | UART, SPI, I2C |
| Package | 20-pin PDIP (P) |
| Mounting Type | Through-Hole |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +125C (E grade) |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
PIC18F15Q40-E/P Pin Configuration
| Pin 1 | RA3/AN3 — Bidirectional I/O / analog input 3 |
| Pin 2 | RA2/AN2 — Bidirectional I/O / analog input 2 |
| Pin 3 | RA1/AN1 — Bidirectional I/O / analog input 1 |
| Pin 4 | RA0/AN0 — Bidirectional I/O / analog input 0 |
| Pin 5 | RA5/MCLR — Bidirectional I/O / Master Clear (reset) |
| Pin 6 | RA4 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 7 | RA7/OSC1 — Bidirectional I/O / oscillator input |
| Pin 8 | RA6/OSC2 — Bidirectional I/O / oscillator output |
| Pin 9 | VSS — Ground reference |
| Pin 10 | VDD — Positive supply voltage |
| Pin 11 | RB4 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 12 | RB5 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 13 | RB6/ICSPCLK — Bidirectional I/O / ICD clock |
| Pin 14 | RB7/ICSPDAT — Bidirectional I/O / ICD data |
| Pin 15 | RC0 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 16 | RC1 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 17 | RC2 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 18 | RC3 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 19 | RC4 — Bidirectional I/O |
| Pin 20 | RC5 — Bidirectional I/O |
Typical Applications
PIC18F15Q40-E/P is suitable for 6 applications: Sensor Signal Conditioning and Edge Filtering, LED Lighting and Color Mixing Control, Low-Cost BLDC / DC Motor Control, Industrial IoT Edge Node, Battery Management Front-End, HMI Touch and Display Driver.
Sensor Signal Conditioning and Edge Filtering
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P is well suited to front-end sensor signal conditioning thanks to its 12-bit ADC with Computation (ADCC), which provides hardware oversampling, accumulation, and low-pass filtering. The on-chip dual 8-bit DACs can produce reference or excitation signals for ratiometric bridges, while DMA offloads repetitive ADC-to-RAM transfers. Placing the MCU adjacent to the sensor minimizes analog noise pickup; AGND and AVSS star-grounding plus the AN4553 ADCC layout guide yield the cleanest readings. Compared with discrete op-amp filter chains, this integrated approach cuts BOM cost and PCB area while improving noise immunity for thermocouple, strain-gauge, or gas-sensor front-ends.
Recommended
LED Lighting and Color Mixing Control
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P drives multi-channel LED lighting via its 16-bit PWM with multiple independent outputs and DMA-assisted update, enabling smooth dimming and color mixing without CPU stalls. PPS lets the designer route PWM channels to any I/O pin, simplifying PCB layout for RGBW or RGBA fixtures. The 8-bit dual DACs provide analog trim channels for constant-current driver reference voltages. Operating from 2.3V to 5.5V, it integrates cleanly with 3.3V or 5V LED driver rails. Compared with a discrete 555/PWM IC, this MCU adds scripting, fault handling, and DMX-style command reception over UART with no extra glue logic.
Recommended
Low-Cost BLDC / DC Motor Control
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P handles entry-level brushless DC and brushed DC motor control using its 16-bit PWM with complementary outputs and configurable dead-band, plus the 12-bit ADCC for back-EMF or current sensing. DMA moves ADC samples into RAM in the background, freeing the CPU to execute field-oriented control loops at deterministic rates. CLCs implement hardware fault gating for overcurrent and undervoltage, bypassing software latency. Housed in a 20-pin PDIP, it is well suited to through-hole hobby, appliance, and small-fan motor designs where a TSSOP or QFN part would be inconvenient to hand-prototype.
Recommended
Industrial IoT Edge Node
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P serves as a low-power edge node in industrial IoT networks by handling local sensor acquisition, threshold-based decision-making, and protocol translation to UART, SPI, or I2C. PPS allows the designer to remap EUSART, MSSP, and PWM to any pin, simplifying PCB routing when adding wireless modules or RS-485 transceivers. The 512-byte EEPROM stores calibration and node-identity parameters across power cycles. Compared with bare-metal 8051 designs, the PIC18F15Q40's ADCC + DMA combination reduces firmware complexity for periodic sensor sampling while operating across -40C to +125C.
Recommended
Battery Management Front-End
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P provides battery cell voltage monitoring, charge-state estimation, and protection FET control in compact battery packs. The 12-bit ADCC scans multiple cell voltages via an external mux, while the dual 8-bit DACs generate programmable reference levels for comparator thresholds. CLCs implement fast hardware cutoff paths independent of firmware, satisfying safety response time requirements. With Flash accessible during runtime, firmware can be updated over UART/SPI for field calibration. Operating from 1.8V to 5.5V, it scales from single-cell Li-ion packs to multi-cell NiMH stacks used in portable medical and industrial tools.
Recommended
HMI Touch and Display Driver
The PIC18F15Q40-E/P acts as a low-cost HMI controller for small character/graphic OLED or LCD displays and capacitive touch button decoding. The CLCs implement hardware debouncing and gesture state machines for touch electrodes, while DMA streams display refresh buffers from Flash to SPI without CPU overhead. PPS routes SPI, I2C, and PWM to any pin for flexible display interface wiring. The 20-pin PDIP form factor simplifies breadboarded prototypes for appliance user interfaces. Compared with dedicated touch ICs, the PIC18F15Q40 adds scripting and on-screen menu logic in the same part.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for PIC18F15Q40-E/P — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | PIC18F14Q40-E/P | PIC18F15Q40-I/P | PIC18F14Q40-I/P | PIC18F05Q40-E/P | PIC18F06Q40-E/P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology |
| Package | 20-pin PDIP (P) | 20-pin PDIP (P) - same | 20-pin PDIP (P) - same | 20-pin PDIP (P) - same | 20-pin PDIP (P) - same | 20-pin PDIP (P) - same |
| Maximum CPU Frequency | 64 MHz | 64 MHz | 64 MHz | 64 MHz | 64 MHz | 64 MHz |
| ADC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC | 12-bit ADCC |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +125C (E grade) | -40C to +125C (E grade) | -40C to +85C (I grade) | -40C to +85C (I grade) | -40C to +125C (E grade) | -40C to +125C (E grade) |
| AEC-Q100 Automotive Qualified | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Key Differentiators
- Larger Flash and RAM than PIC18F14Q40 family member (vs PIC18F14Q40-E/P)
- 12-bit ADCC with Computation vs older 10-bit ADC on K22 family (vs PIC18F14K22-I/P)
- E temperature grade for industrial environments (vs PIC18F15Q40-I/P)
Design Notes
Place a 0.1uF decoupling capacitor within 5mm of each VDD/AVDD pin and a bulk 10uF tantalum or ceramic near the device to suppress switching transients from the internal 64MHz oscillator. The PIC18F15Q40-E/P can operate from 2.3V to 5.5V for full-speed 64MHz operation; below 2.3V the maximum clock is reduced per the family datasheet electrical characteristics. For noise-sensitive ADCC measurements, use a separate filtered AVDD rail and a ferrite bead to isolate from the digital VDD.
Use a single-point star ground tying AGND/AVSS to VSS only at the MCU's ground pin to avoid ground-loop coupling into the 12-bit ADCC inputs. Keep analog traces short, route them away from PWM and switching signals, and guard the analog input traces with ground pours. For breadboard or hand-wired prototypes, the 20-pin PDIP footprint is forgiving, but a 4-layer PCB with a dedicated ground plane significantly improves ADCC SNR.
Do not leave the MCLR pin floating - tie it to VDD through a 10kohm pull-up and a 100nF cap to ground for proper reset behaviour. The PIC18F15Q40's PPS feature lets you remap most peripherals, but the default PPS unlock sequence (writing 0x55 and 0xAA to PPSLOCK) must be performed at the start of firmware or peripheral mapping will silently revert to defaults. Confirm CCP/PWM and EUSART pin assignments in code at every reset, especially when migrating from PIC18F14K22 firmware which uses fixed pin mapping.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliant per Microchip product page. E temperature grade supports industrial environments but is not AEC-Q100 qualified; for automotive use, refer to PIC18FxxQ40 VAO-qualified variants.
