STMicroelectronics has a system-on-chip (SoC) device which adds security features to the emerging NFC (near field communications) market.

Based on embedded non-volatile memory EEPROM technology, the device, called the ST21NFCA, integrates all the necessary hardware and software for a complete NFC system, including support for all the NFC proximity and vicinity standards.

NFC is a short-range wireless comms technology which can be implemented in various devices, such as in a mobile phone, to enable secure electronic payments.

"NFC technology has already proven that it has huge potential for a range of applications, such as secure payment via a mobile phone or electronic ticketing for travel," said Marie-France Florentin, ST’s smartcard ICs business director.

Developed to be used in mobile devices, will support contactless communications at 13.56MHz, and is suitable to be designed into RF reader systems, as well as RF tag or contactless smartcards.

The chip also integrates the necessary Host Controller Interface (HCI) functions, in addition to interfaces for both the I2Cbus and SPIbus, and is compliant with the ETSI specification for Single Wire Protocol (SWP), which describes the connection between a mobile phone’s UICC (Universal Integrated Circuit Card) and the NFC controller.

Based on the technology used in SIM cards, the chip includes the ST21 smartcard microcontroller along with 36kbyte of EEPROM, 112kbyte of user ROM and 4kbyte of RAM. There is an RF analogue front end and embedded firmware that supports the existing contactless standards for proximity and vicinity.

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