Data Sheet
PN512_C1_SDS All information provided in this document is subject to legal disclaimers. © NXP B.V. 2012. All rights reserved.
Product short data sheet
COMPANY PUBLIC
Rev. 3.2 — 20 September 2012
120132  6 of 27
NXP Semiconductors
PN532/C1
Near Field Communication (NFC) controller
7. Functional description
7.1 Contactless Interface Unit (CIU)
The PN532 CIU is a modem for contactless communication at 13.56 MHz. It supports 6 
different operating modes
• ISO/IEC 14443A/MIFARE Reader/Writer.
• FeliCa Reader/Writer.
• ISO/IEC 14443B Reader/Writer 
• ISO/IEC 14443A/MIFARE Card 1K or MIFARE 4K card emulation mode
• FeliCa Card emulation
• ISO/IEC 18092, ECMA 340 NFCIP-1 Peer-to-Peer
The CIU implements a demodulator and decoder for signals from 
ISO/IEC 14443A/MIFARE compatible cards and transponders. The CIU handles the 
complete ISO/IEC 14443A framing and error detection (Parity & CRC).
The CIU supports MIFARE Classic 1K or MIFARE Classic 4K card emulation mode. The 
CIU supports contactless communication using MIFARE Higher transfer speeds up to 
424 kbit/s in both directions.
The CIU can demodulate and decode FeliCa coded signals. The CIU digital part handles 
the FeliCa framing and error detection. The CIU supports contactless communication 
using FeliCa Higher transfer speeds up to 424 kbit/s in both directions.
The CIU supports layers 2 and 3 of the ISO/IEC 14443 B Reader/Writer communication 
scheme, except anticollision which must be implemented in firmware as well as upper 
layers.
In card emulation mode, the CIU is able to answer to a Reader/Writer command either 
according to the FeliCa or ISO/IEC 14443A/MIFARE card interface scheme. The CIU 
generates the load modulation signals, either from its transmitter or from the LOADMOD 
pin driving an external active circuit. A complete secure card functionality is only possible 
in combination with a secure IC using the NFC-WI/S
2
C interface.
Compliant to ECMA 340 and ISO/IEC 18092 NFCIP-1 Passive and Active communication 
modes, the CIU offers the possibility to communicate to another NFCIP-1 compliant 
device, at transfer speeds up to 424 kbit/s.The CIU handles the complete NFCIP-1 
framing and error detection.
The CIU transceiver can be connected to an external antenna for Reader/Writer or 
Card/PICC modes, without any additional active component.










