Adafruit
Adafruit PN532 NFC/RFID Controller Shield for Arduino + Extras
The Adafruit PN532 NFC/RFID Controller Shield brings 13.56 MHz NFC and RFID capabilities to your Arduino. Built around the PN532 chipset — the most widely us...
The Adafruit PN532 NFC/RFID Controller Shield brings 13.56 MHz NFC and RFID capabilities to your Arduino. Built around the PN532 chipset — the most widely used NFC controller, found in virtually every NFC-enabled phone and device — it can read and write to NFC/RFID tags and cards of Type 1 through 4.
The shield was designed by RF engineers using professional test equipment to achieve a 10 cm (4 inch) read range — the maximum possible at 13.56 MHz. The tuned stripline antenna can read through non-metal barriers, so you can mount the shield behind a plastic plate using standoffs.
Key Features
- PN532 NFC Controller – Read and write NFC/RFID Type 1–4 tags and cards at 13.56 MHz
- 10 cm Read Range – Professionally tuned stripline antenna for maximum range
- I2C or SPI Interface – Default I2C on A4/A5 with interrupt on D2; switch to SPI via solder jumpers
- Interrupt Pin – Digital pin 2 pulls low automatically when a card or phone is in range (no polling needed)
- Arduino Shield Form Factor – Plugs directly onto Arduino UNO, Duemilanove, Mega R3, and compatible boards
- Includes 13.56 MHz RFID/NFC 1K Card – Ready to test out of the box
Interface Details
- I2C (default) – Uses A4 (SDA) and A5 (SCL) plus D2 for interrupt; shareable with other I2C devices
- SPI (optional) – Enable by shorting two solder jumpers on top of the PCB; uses any 4 digital pins
Compatibility
- Arduino UNO, Duemilanove, Diecimila, NG
- Arduino Mega R3 and later (Mega R2 and earlier require manual I2C wiring)
- Other Arduino-compatible boards with standard shield headers
Ideal For
- RFID access control and tag reading/writing
- NFC project prototyping and development
- Attendance tracking and asset management systems
- Interactive installations triggered by NFC tags
Package Contents
- 1× Adafruit PN532 NFC/RFID Shield (with tuned 13.56 MHz stripline antenna)
- 1× 36-pin 0.1" header
- 1× 13.56 MHz RFID/NFC 1K card
Resources
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- Headers
- Rows of metal pins used to plug a module into a breadboard or connect it with jumper wires. Pre-soldered headers make the module easier to use straight away without needing to solder the pins yourself.
- I2C
- I2C is a two-wire communication bus used by many sensors and small modules. It matters because several I2C devices can share the same two wires, but each device needs a compatible address and your controller must support I2C.
- PCB
- A printed circuit board is a rigid board with copper tracks that connect electronic parts without loose wires. For this kit, the PCBs also form the airplane shape, so they are both the circuit base and part of the finished model.
- RF
- RF means radio frequency, referring to signals used for wireless communication and other high-frequency electronics. A low-noise, stable power supply is important for RF circuits because power noise can affect signal quality and measurements.
- Shield
- An add-on board that plugs into a main controller board to give it extra features such as sensing, motor control or communication. Knowing a product supports shields helps you judge whether it can connect neatly into an existing maker-board setup.
- SPI
- A fast serial communication bus often used for displays, memory cards, and sensors. It matters because SPI devices need specific pins for clock and data, plus a separate chip-select line for each device.
- UART
- UART is a simple serial connection that sends data over separate transmit and receive wires, often labelled TX and RX. It matters because this module is designed to replace a wired UART cable with a wireless link while keeping the same serial data format.
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