Preliminary Data Sheet
BCM43903
™
WICED IEEE 802.11 b/g/n SoC with an Embedded
Applications Processor
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
FEATURES
The Broadcom® Ltd. BCM43903 embedded wireless
system-on-a-chip (SoC) is uniquely suited for
Internet-of-Things applications. It supports all rates
specified in the IEEE 802.11 b/g/n specifications.The
device includes an ARM Cortex-based applications
processor, a single stream IEEE 802.11n MAC/
baseband/radio, a power amplifier (PA), and a
receive low-noise amplifier (LNA). It also supports
optional antenna diversity for improved RF
Key IEEE 801.11x Features
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IEEE 802.11n compliant.
Single-stream spatial multiplexing up to
150 Mbps.
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Supports 20 MHz channels with optional SGI.
Full IEEE 802.11 b/g legacy compatibility with
enhanced performance.
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TX and RX low-density parity check (LDPC)
support for improved range and power efficiency.
performance in difficult environments.
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On-chip power and low-noise amplifiers.
The BCM43903 is an optimized SoC targeting
embedded Internet-of-Things applications in the
industrial and medical sensor, and home appliance
markets. Using advanced design techniques and
process technology to reduce active and idle power,
the device is designed for embedded applications that
require minimal power consumption and a compact
size.
An internal fractional nPLL allows support for a
wide range of reference clock frequencies.
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Integrated ARM Cortex-R4 processor with tightly
coupled memory for complete WLAN subsystem
functionality, minimizing the need to wake up the
applications processor for standard WLAN
functions (to further minimize power consumption
while maintaining the ability to upgrade to future
features in the field).
The device includes a PMU for simplifying system
power topology and allows for direct operation from a
battery while maximizing battery life.
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Software architecture supported by standard
WICED SDK allows easy migration from existing
discrete MCU designs and to future devices.
FEATURES
Security support:
Application Processor Features
– WPA and WPA2 (Personal) support for
powerful encryption and authentication.
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ARM Cortex-R4 32-bit RISC processor.
1 MB of on-chip SRAM for code and data.
An on-chip cryptography core
– AES and TKIP in hardware for faster data
encryption and IEEE 802.11i compatibility.
640 KB of ROM containing WICED SDK
– Reference WLAN subsystem provides
Cisco Compatible Extensions (CCX, CCX 2.0,
CCX 3.0, CCX 4.0, and CCX 5.0).
components such as RTOS and TCP/IP stack.
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17 GPIOs supported.
Q-SPI serial flash interface to support up to 40
Mbps of peak transfer.
– Wi-Fi Protected Setup and Wi-Fi Easy-Setup
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Worldwide regulatory support: Global products
supported with worldwide design approval.
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Support for UART (3), SPI or BSC master, and
BSC-only interfaces. (Broadcom Serial Control
General Features
(BSC) is an I2C-compatible interface.)
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Supports battery voltage range from 3.0V to 4.8V
with an internal switching regulator.
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Programmable dynamic power management.
6 Kb OTP memory for storing board parameters.
151-ball WLBGA (4.91mm x 5.85mm, 0.4mm
pitch)
43903-DS102-R
March 12, 2016
Corporate Headquarters: San Jose, CA