Datasheet

SAM9261 [DATASHEET]
Atmel-6062O-ATARM-SAM9261-Datasheet_21-Jun-16
216
22. Peripheral DMA Controller (PDC)
22.1 Overview
The Peripheral DMA Controller (PDC) transfers data between on-chip serial peripherals and the on- and/or off-chip
memories. The link between the PDC and a serial peripheral is operated by the AHB to ABP bridge.
The PDC contains
19 channels. The full-duplex peripherals feature 18 mono directional channels used in pairs
(transmit only or receive only). The half-duplex peripherals feature 1 bi-directional channels.
The user interface of each PDC channel is integrated into the user interface of the peripheral it serves. The user
interface of mono directional channels (receive only or transmit only), contains two 32-bit memory pointers and two
16-bit counters, one set (pointer, counter) for current transfer and one set (pointer, counter) for next transfer. The
bi-directional channel user interface contains four 32-bit memory pointers and four 16-bit counters. Each set
(pointer, counter) is used by current transmit, next transmit, current receive and next receive.
Using the PDC removes processor overhead by reducing its intervention during the transfer. This significantly
reduces the number of clock cycles required for a data transfer, which improves microcontroller performance.
To launch a transfer, the peripheral triggers its associated PDC channels by using transmit and receive signals.
When the programmed data is transferred, an end of transfer interrupt is generated by the peripheral itself.