Intel MCS-51

The Intel MCS-51 (commonly termed 8051) is a single-chip <a href="/facts/Microcontroller/MKrnAhnm">microcontroller</a> (MCU) series developed by <a href="/facts/Intel/SMF0gJJX">Intel</a> in 1980 for use in <a href="/facts/Embedded_system/a4muX1wU">embedded systems</a>. The architect of the Intel MCS-51 instruction set was <a href="/facts/John_H._Wharton/WdMrX7qD">John H. Wharton</a>. Intel's original versions were popular in the 1980s and early 1990s, and enhanced <a href="/facts/Binary_compatible/7lkFAUfv">binary compatible</a> derivatives remain popular today. It is a <a href="/facts/Complex_instruction_set_computer/Ucvyh2xq">complex instruction set computer</a> with separate memory spaces for program instructions and data.
Intel's original MCS-51 family was developed using N-type metal–oxide–semiconductor (<a href="/facts/NMOS_logic/6hup3T21">NMOS</a>) technology, like its predecessor <a href="/facts/Intel_MCS-48/MNM9qbpw">Intel MCS-48</a>, but later versions, identified by a letter C in their name (e.g., 80C51) use complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (<a href="/facts/CMOS/NJIWYgBl">CMOS</a>) technology and consume less power than their NMOS predecessors. This made them more suitable for battery-powered devices.
The family was continued in 1996 with the enhanced <a href="/facts/8-bit/2CkhLNoH">8-bit</a> MCS-151 and the 8/<a href="/facts/16-bit/bTGS44Ne">16</a>/<a href="/facts/32-bit/TDMVce8s">32-bit</a> MCS-251 family of binary compatible microcontrollers.[3] While Intel no longer manufactures the MCS-51, MCS-151 and MCS-251 family, enhanced <a href="/facts/Binary_compatible/7lkFAUfv">binary compatible</a> derivatives made by numerous vendors remain popular today. Some derivatives integrate a <a href="/facts/Digital_signal_processor/YuBXweos">digital signal processor</a> (DSP) or a <a href="/facts/Floating-point_unit/XWTW2AbF">floating-point unit</a> (coprocessor, FPU). Beyond these physical devices, several companies also offer MCS-51 derivatives as <a href="/facts/IP_core/yx66l6wL">IP cores</a> for use in <a href="/facts/Field-programmable_gate_array/M8LSGcAU">field-programmable gate array</a> (FPGA) or <a href="/facts/Application-specific_integrated_circuit/YGUXpX50">application-specific integrated circuit</a> (ASIC) designs.

Intel MCS-51 open-in-new

Intel MCS-51