STM32 Microcontroller Development

STM32 Microcontroller Development is a specialized area of embedded systems engineering that focuses on creating firmware for the STMicroelectronics family of 32-bit ARM Cortex-M based microcontrollers. This practice involves writing, compiling, and debugging low-level code, typically in C or C++, to directly control hardware and interact with a wide array of integrated peripherals such as GPIO, timers, ADCs, and communication interfaces like UART, I2C, and SPI. It bridges fundamental computer science principles, including computer architecture and real-time operating systems, with software engineering methodologies to design, test, and deploy robust software for a vast range of applications, from consumer electronics and IoT devices to complex industrial control systems.

1. Introduction to STM32 Microcontrollers
   1. Overview of Microcontrollers
      1. Definition and Purpose of Microcontrollers
      2. Microcontroller vs. Microprocessor
      3. Typical Applications of Microcontrollers
   2. ARM Cortex-M Core Architecture
      1. Overview of ARM Cortex-M Series
      2. Core Variants
         1. Cortex-M0
         2. Cortex-M0+
         3. Cortex-M3
         4. Cortex-M4
         5. Cortex-M7
      3. Core Features
         1. Harvard Architecture
         2. Thumb Instruction Set
         3. Thumb-2 Instruction Set
         4. Exception Handling
         5. Interrupt Handling
      4. Core Peripherals
         1. Nested Vectored Interrupt Controller (NVIC)
         2. System Tick Timer (SysTick)
         3. Memory Protection Unit (MPU)
         4. Debug Access Port (DAP)
         5. Instrumentation Trace Macrocell (ITM)
   3. STMicroelectronics Ecosystem
      1. STM32 Product Families
         1. STM32F Series
         2. STM32L Series
         3. STM32G Series
         4. STM32H Series
         5. STM32WB Series
         6. STM32WL Series
      2. Naming Convention and Part Numbering
         1. Decoding STM32 Part Numbers
         2. Package Types
         3. Pin Count Identification
         4. Memory Size Identification
      3. Key Features and Applications
         1. Performance Characteristics
         2. Power Consumption Profiles
         3. Integrated Peripherals
         4. Target Application Areas
   4. Programming Approaches
      1. Bare-Metal Programming Concepts
      2. Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) Overview
      3. Low-Layer (LL) Drivers Overview
      4. Trade-offs and Use Cases