Performance & Power Analysis

Performance & Power Analysis

On a microcontroller, "it works on USB" is not the same as "it works on a battery in the field". This subject is about measuring and advising on timing and energy: where the cycles go, what wakes the MCU, and whether a motor or radio burst will brown out the supply.

Starting Points

• Sampling, PWM & conversion
• Manufacturer application notes on low-power modes for your MCU family.
• Oscilloscope current-shunt or USB power-meter workflow from Lab tools & soldering.

Key Points

• You measure or estimate a critical timing path (loop period, interrupt latency, bus transaction) and compare it to the requirement.
• You identify the main energy consumers (radio, motor, always-on LED, polling loop) and propose a concrete reduction.
• You advise on sleep vs. polling vs. interrupt-driven I/O with a rationale, not a preference.
• You report findings with numbers, method, and limits of the measurement.