CP2102N USB-to-Serial Adapter Carrier

SKU: POLOLU-1317 Brand: Pololu
This USB-to-serial adapter lets you easily connect a TTL serial device to a PC by acting as a virtual serial port. The board is a Micro-USB carrier for ...
$16.30 AUD, inc GST
$14.82 AUD, exc GST

In stock, ships same business day if ordered before 2PM
Delivered by Tue, 26th of Nov

Quantity Discounts:

  • 10-25 $14.23 (exc GST)
  • 25+ $13.78 (exc GST)
- +

2 from local stock, 1 supplier stock; your order will dispatch between Dec 1 to Dec 10. And yes, stock levels and lead times are accurate!

Shipping:

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  • $11+ Express (2+ days*, tracked)
  • FREE Pickup (Newcastle only - must order online*)

Shipping costs may increase for heavy products or large orders.

Exact shipping can be calculated on the view cart page.

*Conditions apply, see shipping tab below.

CP2102N USB-to-serial adapter carrier, bottom view with dimensions.

This USB-to-serial adapter is a breakout board for the Silicon Labs CP2102N USBXpress USB-to-UART bridge, and it is a great solution for connecting microcontroller projects and other logic-level serial devices to a personal computer. The tiny unit measures only 0.6" × 0.95" including its Micro-USB connector. It offers several options for accessing the data, control, and GPIO pins on the CP2102N, all of which are made available on a 0.1" spacing.

This board uses 3.3 V signal levels by default, but the signal pins can tolerate higher voltages, allowing the adapter to be used with 5 V systems that see 3.3 V as a logic high. The green LED on the SUSPEND line indicates an active USB connection when lit.

The adapter looks like a standard virtual serial port (COM port) to the computer’s operating system, which means it can be used with any software designed to work with a serial port (even a legacy RS-232 port). The CP2102N is a full-speed USB 2.0 device and allows baud rates of up to 3 Mbps. Drivers are available from Silicon Labs for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Linux, and Mac OS X.

This product requires a USB A to Micro-B cable (not included) to connect to a computer.

If you do not need access to all of the serial control signals, consider the Pololu USB AVR Programmer v2.1 as an alternative. In addition to its functionality as an AVR programmer, it can be used as a USB-to-TTL serial adapter with two configurable serial handshaking lines and support for both 3.3 V and 5 V operation.

For most applications, this CP2102N carrier can be considered a drop-in replacement for Pololu's older CP2104 USB-to-Serial Adapter Carrier with a few improvements like a higher maximum baud rate and re-programmable configuration ROM.

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 0.6" × 0.95" including connector
  • USB standard: USB 2.0 (full speed)
  • Connector: USB Micro-B
  • Logic voltage level: 3.3 V (5 V tolerant)
  • Supported baud rates: 300 bps to 3 Mbps
  • Supply current: 15 mA

Using the adapter

Pinout

Pin Type Function
VDD Power  3.3 V voltage regulator output
VBUS Power USB bus voltage (5 V)
GND Power Ground
RST In Device reset
TX Out Asynchronous serial data transmit (idle high)
RX In Asynchronous serial data receive
CTS In “Clear to send” control input
(often used with RTS)
RTS Out “Ready to send” control output
(often used with CTS)
DSR In "Data set ready" control input (active low)
(often used with DTR)
DTR Out "Data terminal ready" control output (active low)
(often used with DSR)
DCD In "Data carrier detect" control input (active low)
RI In "Ring indicator" control input (active low)
SUSPEND  Out Driven high when in USB suspend state
SUSPEND Out Driven low when in USB suspend state
(connected to green LED)
GPIO.0 I/O User-configurable inputs or outputs
GPIO.1
GPIO.2
GPIO.3

Connections

All of the adapter’s pins are available in two rows spaced 0.5" apart along the sides of the board. This allows any pin to be accessed easily while the adapter is plugged into a solderless breadboard, as shown in the left picture below.

Alternatively, a 1×6 header can be soldered to the end of the board, as shown in the right picture below. This gives access to six signals (RTS, RX, TX, VBUS, CTS, and GND) that are commonly found on FTDI cables and other similar USB-to-serial adapters. As a result, this CP2102N adapter board can be used as a drop-in replacement for an FTDI cable in many applications, such as programming Arduino-compatible boards.

CP2102N USB-to-serial adapter carrier in a breadboard with included 0.1" male headers installed.

CP2102N USB-to-serial adapter carrier with included 6-pin 0.1" right-angle female header installed.

The carrier board ships with a 1×25 straight male header strip, a 1×6 right-angle male header strip, and a 1×6 right-angle female header as shown below. You can also solder wires directly to the pads for the smallest installation.

Using a different VIO

This carrier board connects the VIO pin of the CP2102N to VDD by default, setting its logic voltage level to the 3.3 V provided by the IC’s built-in voltage regulator. If you want to use a lower logic voltage, you can disconnect VIO from VDD by cutting the thin trace between the two pads of the surface-mount jumper shown to the right. You can then solder a thin wire to the exposed via labeled “VIO” and connect it to a separate voltage supply (as low as 1.71 V).

Warning: Pololu do not recommend externally supplying VIO to this board while it is not connected to USB, as this can cause it to draw excessive current (up to a few hundred milliamps).

Schematic diagram

This schematic is also available as a downloadable PDF (169k pdf).

Advanced features

You do not need to be familiar with details of the CP2102N to use this board as a basic USB-to-serial adapter, but the CP2102N also has specialized features including four general-purpose I/O (GPIO) pins and the ability to be customized by configuring its internal EEPROM. For advanced users interested in these features, Pololu recommend careful reading of the CP2102N datasheet (619k pdf). Additional resources, including application notes referenced by the datasheet, can also be found on the CP2102N product page on the Silicon Labs website.

People often buy this product together with:

USB Micro-B Connector Breakout BoardUSB Micro-B Connector Breakout Board
Logic Level Shifter, 4-Channel, BidirectionalLogic Level Shifter, 4-Channel, Bidirectional
Thin (2mm) USB Cable A to Micro-B, 6 ft, Low/Full-Speed OnlyThin (2mm) USB Cable A to Micro-B, 6 ft, Low/Full-Speed Only

Dimensions

Size: 0.6" × 0.95" × 0.17"1
Weight: 1.4 g2

General specifications

Baud: 300 bps–3 Mbps

Identifying markings

PCB dev codes: usb03b
Other PCB markings: 0J13036

Notes:

1
Without included optional headers. This measurement includes the USB Micro-B connector, which extends 0.05" past the edge of the PCB.
2
Without included optional headers.

File downloads

Recommended links

This product is listed in:

Programmers>USB to Serial (UART)

Product Comments

Exact shipping can be calculated on the view cart page (no login required).

Products that weigh more than 0.5 KG may cost more than what's shown (for example, test equipment, machines, >500mL liquids, etc).

We deliver Australia-wide with these options (depends on the final destination - you can get a quote on the view cart page):

  • $3+ for Stamped Mail (typically 10+ business days, not tracked, only available on selected small items)
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Non-metro addresses in WA, NT, SA & TAS can take 2+ days in addition to the above information.

Some batteries (such as LiPo) can't be shipped by Air. During checkout, Express Post and International Methods will not be an option if you have that type of battery in your shopping cart.

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Our physical address (here's a PDF which includes other key business details):

Unit 18, 132 Garden Grove Parade
Adamstown
NSW, 2289
Australia

Take a look at our customer service page if you have other questions such as "do we do purchase orders" (yes!) or "are prices GST inclusive" (yes they are!). We're here to help - get in touch with us to talk shop.

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